The Most Convenient Definitions
by Syn2
Summary: When Harry Potter, Ginny Weasley, Draco Malfoy, Luna Lovegood and Justin Finch-Fletchley get detention, barriers will shatter and five misfits will find unexpected friendship.
1. Part One

Title: The Most Convenient Definitions (1/4)  
  
Author: Syn  
  
E-Mail: veruca_werewolf@hotmail.com  
  
Rating: R--Kiddies beware, there's cursing and sex talk.  
  
Content: Harry/Luna, Ginny/Draco  
  
Spoilers: OotP  
  
Disclaimer: The characters in this story belong to J.K. Rowling and all those important sounding companies. Concept by John Hughes.  
  
Summary: When Harry Potter, Ginny Weasley, Draco Malfoy, Luna Lovegood and Justin Finch-Fletchley get detention, barriers will shatter and five misfits will find unexpected friendship.  
  
A/N: Why yes, this IS heavily based on The Breakfast Club, though many things have been changed. Still, I loved the dialogue of the movie so much that I had to keep some bits and scenes in tact as much as I could. I wrote this because, randomly, I decided that Luna reminded me of Allison the Basket case and well...the idea took on a life of its own and I couldn't NOT write it. You're probably wondering why I put Justin Finch-Fletchley in the "Brain" role. I considered both Hermione and Ron, but I didn't want to include one and exclude the other. Plus, I had someone from every house but Hufflepuff. So I picked Justin (though not randomly). He works in the context of the story. You'll see what I mean.  
  
A/N2: By the way, I'm American. Expect Americanisms. I can't help it.  
  
Feedback: Oh would you? Could you?  
  
NOTE: I've reuploaded this chapter because of the way ff.net mangled my coding. Grr. This is the bare version, but much more legible and without all those stupid spaces.  
  
****  
  
"...and these children that you spit on, as they try to change their worlds are immune to your consultations. They're quite aware of what they're going through..." - David Bowie  
  
****  
  
Saturday. February 17th.   
  
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.   
  
Dear Professor Snape,  
  
We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Hogsmeade visit for whatever it was that we did wrong. What we did WAS wrong. But we think you're mad to make us write an essay telling you who we think we are--what do you care? You see us as you want to see us...in the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions. You see us as a brain, a hero, a loon, a brat and a troublemaker. Correct? That's the way we saw each other at seven o'clock this morning.   
  
We were wrong.  
  
****  
  
Ginny Weasley impatiently pushed a strand of bright red hair from her face, cheeks colored the same shade in brilliant patches beneath her freckles. Her lower lip was worried between her teeth, a nervous habit she hated, but couldn't wean herself from. An impending sense of doom swelled over her.  
  
She definitely didn't want to be here. Not on a Saturday. And especially not on a Hogsmeade weekend.   
  
"I can't believe I can't get out of this." She muttered, staring morosely at the Library doors from around the statue of Marmaduke the Mistaken, a wizard captured in the throws of a spell gone awry.  
  
"I can't believe you actually skipped Potions and went down into Hogsmeade illegally. What in the world were you thinking?" Colin Creevy asked, leaning toward her, a warm sweater on and a pair of gloves tucked beneath his arm. He looked ready for a day in the cold and Ginny felt more than a twinge of jealousy toward him. He was going to spend all day in Hogsmeade having fun and she was going to be stuck in detention with Snape for eight hours.   
  
The unfairness of the situation was like a Bludger to her stomach.   
  
Ginny glared at him. "I was thinking, 'Gee, wouldn't it be fun to skive off Potions and spend the day in Hogsmeade?' At least I was brave enough to try it. Unlike some people." She snapped back at him with much more force than she'd meant to. Colin looked taken aback.  
  
"Don't snap my head off, Gin. You got yourself into this mess and you can deal with it." He said sagely, drawing himself up as much as he could. He flipped his scarlet and gold scarf over his shoulder and looked down his nose at her. "Have fun."  
  
"Yeah right." She snapped back at him, rolling her eyes. He scowled and turned on his heel, stalking away into a crowd of fourth year Ravenclaw's on the way to the front doors. Ginny watched him go, feeling slightly sorry that she'd snapped at him. Then of course, she remembered about her impending detention with Snape and the feeling vanished.   
  
Her attention turned back to the Library doors. She peered around Marmaduke's accidentally cloven hooves-for-hands for a moment, glanced at the time on her wristwatch and sighed.   
  
"Prepare to meet your doom, Gin." She muttered under her breath as she stepped away from Marmaduke the Mistaken's plinth and started toward the Library, knowing that today was going to be a complete waste.  
  
****  
  
Justin Finch-Fletchley waved goodbye to Ernie MacMillan and Hannah Abbot as they swept out of the Great Hall, black cloaks swishing around the corner and out of sight. His attention grudgingly went back to the forgotten plate of kippers in front of him. He tried to swallow a bite, but it seemed to get stuck in his throat. With a sudden feeling of sickness, he pushed it away and rested his forehead on the heel of his palm.   
  
He knew he should be on his way to the Library right now, but he couldn't make himself get up from the Hufflepuff table.   
  
A sudden screech and the familiar flutter of wings near his ear called his attention back to the rapidly emptying Great Hall. A handsome barn owl had landed near his elbow, a letter attached to its leg.   
  
His stomach dropped. He knew exactly whom it was from.  
  
With trembling hands, he untied it and slit it open. His mother's familiar, loopy scrawl greeted him immediately.   
  
Justin,  
  
I received the letter from your Head of House about your misbehavior. I can't tell you how shocked and disappointed in you I am! Your father and I didn't send you there so you could waste your life! This wouldn't be happening if you had attended Eton like I wanted! At ETON, you'd be getting a real education and using that brain of yours for something useful. As it is, I fully agree that you should get as many detentions as your so-called professors think you should and if I had my way, we'd pull you home right now. And if this takes your marks down at all, then consider yourself gone from Hogwarts! I saw how many O.W.L.S. you got and I know you could have gotten more. No wonder you didn't make prefect again! You'd better spend your time studying while you're in detention because I expect full marks on your next test!  
  
Mother   
  
The sick feeling in Justin's stomach swelled again, acid burning in his throat. No, I love you, no understanding words of motherly sympathy and no goodbye. Not that he'd expected any, but it would have been a nice change. He swallowed hard, crumpled the letter in his fist and then looked around the Great Hall. His attention caught on the clock near one of the suits of armor and he immediately jumped to his feet.  
  
His detention with Snape was going to start in a few minutes and he'd have to run to get there on time. As he started out, sprinting past some first year Slytherin's, he had a feeling that the day was only going to get worse.  
  
****  
  
"Its bad luck mate. Snape's got it in for you, you know." Ron Weasley said as he, Hermione Granger and Harry Potter trooped down the stairs near the Library doors.   
  
Hermione gave a little huffing sound that made both boys' attention swing toward her. Harry could see her exasperation written clearly on her face.  
  
"What?" He asked, slightly annoyed.  
  
"Snape has NOT got it in for Harry. We've been over this before. Besides, Snape had nothing to do with you getting detention and you both know it." Her dark eyes burned at them both. Ron and Harry exchanged dark looks.  
  
"Well if he hadn't have said my Anti-Gravity potion was rubbish in Advanced Potions I--"  
  
"Don't you dare try to blame someone else for what you did, Harry! You know full well it wasn't Snape!" Hermione exclaimed fiercely, her bushy hair falling across her face.   
  
"Yeah well...I still don't have to like him."  
  
"Of course you don't, he's horrible." Hermione said matter-of-factly and then glanced at the time on her wrist. "You'd better go and face the music, Harry. Good luck."  
  
"Sorry, mate." Ron said, patting Harry none-too-reassuringly on the shoulder. Harry shrugged as Ron furtively grabbed Hermione's hand and led her down the corridor toward the stairs. Harry watched them go, a scowl on his face. He wasn't entirely happy that he was going to have to spend the whole day with Snape and they were going to Hogsmeade together.   
  
Then again...at least he didn't have to be the third wheel all day and pretend not to see the little smiles the two of them exchanged. Compared to that, Snape's detention was almost tolerable, Harry thought as he pushed the Library doors open.  
  
Almost.  
  
Upon entering the Library though, he was slightly taken aback at the sight before him. Ginny Weasley was sitting at the table nearest to the doors, looking as miserable as he felt. She was studying her neat fingernails with interest.  
  
Harry didn't say anything, just stood there in surprise.   
  
Ginny looked up, caught his gaze and flushed a brilliant crimson.  
  
"What are you doing here?" She asked, her eyebrows drawn up.  
  
"I have detention with Snape today. What about you?" Harry asked, walking up to her table, his hands in the pockets of his robes.  
  
"Same thing."  
  
"Really? What did you do?"  
  
"I--" Ginny was cut off as the door of the Library swung open to admit a panting Justin Finch-Fletchley, whose curly hair was plastered to his forehead in the front, his face damp with sweat. He must have run all the way up there.   
  
Justin stopped in mid-step as he saw Ginny and Harry, clearly uncertain about something. He blinked. "I...do you two have Saturday detention too?"  
  
"Yes." They answered at the same time.  
  
"Oh...okay." Justin said uneasily, looking rather nervous. Harry glanced back at Ginny and motioned to the chair next to hers. She shrugged and he sat down immediately. Justin wiped at the sweat on his forehead and crossed the empty Library to sit at the table behind them, the legs of his chair scraping along the floor.   
  
Harry ran his fingers through his hair, attempting to make it lie flat, even though he knew it wouldn't. As he looked over the rim of his glasses he saw a dark blur enter through the doors. Thinking this was surely Snape; he refocused his gaze in his glasses and felt his stomach drop even lower than before.  
  
Draco Malfoy sauntered into the Library, a lock of silvery blonde hair across his forehead, a smirk on his pale, pointed face. His gray eyes shifted around the room, sliding over Harry and Justin and lingering for a few moments on Ginny, who was back to studying her fingernails. He walked by the counter usually occupied by Madam Pince, picking up random objects and stamps and flinging them away as he reached something new.   
  
Harry couldn't help but glare at him. Ever since last spring, when Harry had gotten his father caught in the Ministry with all those other Death Eaters, Malfoy had gone from bad to worse. But Harry had expected that. Malfoy had always treated him like that, but nowadays Malfoy took his anger out on anyone and everyone he could get his hands on. Including the teachers.  
  
It was like he didn't care anymore. Before, Malfoy had never wanted to get into trouble for causing mayhem, but now...he almost went out of his way to make sure he got caught. He'd even been kicked off the Slytherin Quidditch team and had his prefect badge taken away from him because of it.   
  
Harry didn't feel sorry for him. He was just wary of what he could be planning. And Harry was sure he was planning something against him. With his father in Azkaban and his mother on the run overseas, there was no way Draco Malfoy wasn't looking to pay him back.   
  
Draco didn't meet his burning gaze though as he sauntered around his and Ginny's table and stopped at the one Justin was sitting at, still trying to catch his breath. Justin looked up into Draco's blank face and shrank back a little in his seat. Draco kept staring.   
  
Justin took the hint and quickly abandoned the chair, heading for the table immediately adjacent as Draco folded himself gracefully in the seat and propped his feet up on the back of another chair with a dull clunk. He didn't look at Harry or acknowledge he'd seen him; just sat there, his long fingers folded over his stomach.  
  
Harry turned back around in his seat just in time to catch a familiar blonde haired girl drift through the doors, obviously in her own world.   
  
Luna Lovegood's long blonde hair was piled up on her head in a large knot. Not even the long, straggly strands that had managed to escape the bunched knot and fall across her face could hide her wide, permanently surprised eyes. She stopped dead in her tracks as she spotted first Harry, then Ginny, then Justin. She seemed to take no notice of Draco.  
  
"Hello." A small smile played on her lips.  
  
"Hi." Harry said numbly, wondering what on earth Loony Lovegood could have done to get detention. She looked around the room again, as if seeing it for the first time.   
  
"What are you all doing in here?"  
  
"Detention." Ginny said glumly, her hand on her chin.   
  
"Oh yes, of course you are." Luna said vaguely and then drifted across the Library, leaving Harry and Ginny to stare after her as she chose a table to herself behind Justin. Harry and Ginny exchanged amused glances and stifled their laughter as she heaved a large bag onto the table with a clunk.  
  
Harry looked up in time to see the door swing open again. He barely suppressed a groan of dread as he saw Professor Snape walk in, severe black robes billowing behind him, greasy black hair trailing across his hooked nose. His shrewd eyes narrowed at the five of them, looking from one unhappy face to the other. A small, cold smile curled the corners of his lips as he stopped dead in front of Harry and Ginny's table.  
  
"Well...well. Here we are!" Snape said staring them all down. "I suppose I should congratulate you for being on time..."  
  
Ginny suddenly raised her hand, glancing at Harry from the corner of her eye.  
  
"Excuse me, sir? I was just wondering...why are we all together? I mean, usually we do individual detentions..."  
  
Snape ignored her and pulled back the cuff of his robes to reveal his pale, bony wrist and the strange watch strapped to it. "It is now seven-oh-six. You have exactly eight hours and fifty-four minutes to think about why you're here. To ponder the error of your ways...though I daresay the severity of your punishment will get through those thick, rule-breaking skulls of yours."   
  
He looked hard at Harry, and then let his gaze flicker to Draco's. Harry stirred in his seat, suddenly noticing the icy way Snape was glaring at Malfoy. Malfoy seemed not to notice as he ran his fingers through his hair, mussing it up from its usually sleek look. His silver gaze ticked to Ginny and then back again.   
  
Snape called Harry's attention back to him.   
  
"There are, however, rules to your detention that I expect you to follow. You may not talk. You will not move from these seats. And you," Snape said, moving up the aisle beside Harry and suddenly wrenching the chair out from under Malfoy's feet. Malfoy glared at him. "Will not sleep. Now, your detentions were assigned to me even though I am a busy man and I don't have time to baby-sit you lot like a bunch of first years, but you will not be idle. You are going to write an essay--of no less than a foot long--describing to me who you think you are."  
  
Snape smirked at them, eyes meeting Harry's for a moment and flicking away.  
  
"Is this a test?" Draco's drawling voice spoke up boredly. Snape ignored him; pulled his wand from the folds his black robes and waved it at the desk before him. Five quills and several rolls of parchment materialized from thin air. Without hesitation, he passed them out, speaking in his cold tone.  
  
"When I say essay...I mean essay. I do not mean a single word repeated a thousand times. Is that clear Mr. Malfoy?" He turned on Malfoy who boredly picked up his quill and fingered the feathered barbs.  
  
"Quite clear..."  
  
  
  
"Good. Maybe you'll learn a little something about yourselves. Maybe you'll even decide whether or not you care to return to school next year."   
  
Justin, who had finally caught his breath and was now looking peaky, raised his hand.   
  
"I can honestly say that I've um...seen the error of my ways, sir and I would indeed like to return--"   
  
  
  
"Shut up Finch-Fletchley." Snape said dismissively as he swooped back to the front of the tables, his lips pursed.  
  
  
  
"Yes sir..." Justin mumbled and shrank in on himself.  
  
"The teacher's lounge is right down that hall. Any funny business is ill advised. Questions?" Snape asked, looking as if he didn't care if there were any at all.  
  
"Yeah...I got a question." Malfoy drawled, dropping the quill and glaring at Snape, who glared right back. "Do you ever wash that greasy head of yours?"  
  
  
  
"I'll give you the answer to that question, Mr. Malfoy, tomorrow." Snape said coolly and with a subtle lift of his eyebrow. Then he promptly turned on his heel and swept out of the open door of the Library, leaving them sitting in the huge, dusty room, the sounds of an unnaturally empty school settling around them.   
  
Quiet encased them and was suddenly interrupted by a loud popping noise from the corner. Harry swiveled in his seat, as did Ginny, Draco and Justin. They all stared at Luna Lovegood, who seemed to take no notice of them as she took her left wrist in her right hand and bent it backward as far as it would go. There was another loud pop as her wrist gave. A faint smile played on her lips and she reached for her right wrist to do the same to it.  
  
She caught sight of everyone watching her and faltered mid-pop.   
  
"What?"  
  
"Do you mind? Some of us are trying to study." Draco said mock-scathingly, motioning toward his scroll and quill. Luna just stared at him unblinkingly. "I've seen you before you know...you run with Potty..."  
  
Luna stared. Malfoy rolled his eyes and turned to Justin, who was sitting at the table next to him, running his quill under his nose and muttering to himself.  
  
"Who am I? Who are you? WHAT am I?" Justin mused seriously to himself, then balanced his quill over his top lip, the barbs resembling a mustache. "I...am...a...walrus..."  
  
Malfoy lifted an eyebrow and leaned forward at the table, toward Justin. Justin caught the movement out of the corner of his eye and let the quill drop into his open palm. He looked slightly embarrassed.  
  
"Detention's bloody awful, eh?" The Hufflepuff hazarded, swallowing hard.  
  
Malfoy didn't answer, just glared. Justin gave a nervous laugh and quickly averted his gaze to the empty expanse of scroll rolled out before him.   
  
Malfoy shifted in his chair, straddling it with both legs. There was a crumpling sound and then a large wad that must have been Malfoy's scroll flew past Ginny's ear. Ginny's face went rigid with rage, but she didn't say anything. Suddenly, Harry's shoulders tensed as he heard him humming a very familiar song under his breath. It was "Weasley is Our King"; beside him, Ginny also tensed again, her slender fingers closing into fists on the table. Malfoy's humming got louder and louder as he started drumming on the table with the flat of his palms.  
  
"I'm going to kill him." Ginny muttered under her breath. The song went on until Harry couldn't take it anymore. He whipped around in his seat and glared at Malfoy.  
  
"Shut up!"  
  
"You're pretty sexy when you get angry, Potter." Malfoy said with a wink. His gaze flicked to the back of Ginny's bright red head and then over to Justin, who had gone back to his paper looking flustered. "Hey, Hufflepuff. Why don't you whip out that big fat wand of yours and close that door? We'll get Weasley here impregnated!"  
  
Ginny immediately turned in her seat and glared at Malfoy, her cheeks flaming. She looked ready to kill him.   
  
"Hey!" Harry interjected, his fingers clenched into fists. Malfoy ignored him, his gaze on Ginny. "HEY!"  
  
"What?" Malfoy asked, tearing his eyes away from Ginny.  
  
"You don't want to make me mad, Malfoy." Harry said testily, his wand in his fingers. Malfoy lifted an eyebrow.  
  
"Oh? Going to use one of those lovely curses you've learned from Dumbledore on me?"  
  
Harry's insides went cold. "What are you talking about?"  
  
"Everyone knows, Potter. You're learning advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts from Dumbledore to use against the Dark Lord. You can't possibly think we're all stupid enough not to figure it out?"  
  
"I wouldn't put it past you, Malfoy."  
  
"Well then...let's see something. A demonstration from the famous little Potter..." Draco waved Harry to stand up. Ginny glared.  
  
"Just shut up, Malfoy. You're trying to make Harry fight you and its not going to work. Just sit there and shut up like a good little ferret." Ginny snarled and then promptly turned around in her seat. Harry turned around too, still seething with anger.  
  
"Really." He muttered. "Bloody git."  
  
"What I'm wondering is, what did Dumbledore's Pet do to get in here? Forget to kiss his ass before you went to bed at night?" Draco mused nastily, clearly trying to get a rise out of Harry, who turned around once again to glare at him. Over his shoulder, Harry caught sight of Luna watching them, her round, silvery eyes on Harry. Her lips were pressed in a thin line.  
  
"Excuse me?" Justin interjected rather nervously. "I think we should...we should just work on our essays like Professor--"  
  
"Look, just because you're a spoiled brat whose mum and dad abandoned him doesn't mean you have the right to be a pain in the ass! We're going to be in here for a while, so why don't you just knock it off before I have to beat you right senseless?"  
  
Malfoy registered mock pain on his face and clutched his heart. "Oh, that was so...womanly of you Potter! Just like a girly Gryffindor!"  
  
"He's just trying to make you angry so Snape'll come in here and give you another detention. Just ignore him!" Ginny said under breath, even though she looked ready to turn around and hex him herself.  
  
Malfoy gave a small chuckle. "Weasley...you couldn't ignore me if you tried." Ginny turned in her chair again and saw him staring at her. She rolled her eyes. Malfoy looked from Harry to Ginny and back again. "So...wait...are you two like, boyfriend/girlfriend?"  
  
Harry and Ginny turned around in their seats; Harry red with embarrassment and fury and Ginny blushing scarlet.  
  
"Do you date? Take her into Hogsmeade and buy the POOR wittle Weasley gifts with the money your dead mommy and daddy left you? Are you two...lovers?" He gave another dry chuckle as Harry wondered just how hard he'd have to hit him to knock his head clean off his shoulders. "Level with me Potter, is she better in bed than she looks?"  
  
Harry and Ginny both wheeled around to face him. "GOT TO HELL!"   
  
"ENOUGH!" Harry screamed, drowning out the torrent of swearing coming from Ginny.   
  
"Don't make me come in there!" Snape's sudden bark reminded them of where they were and why. He didn't come in though and they all relaxed, looking at each other appraisingly.   
  
"Asshole." Harry muttered to Malfoy, who smiled, got up from his seat and walked over to a low bookshelf next to Ginny. He eyed the open Library door with narrowed eyes as he sat down on top the shelf.  
  
"What do you say we close that door?" He proposed, "We can't have any kind of a party with that git Snape listening in on us."  
  
"The doors are supposed to be open, I believe." Justin spoke up matter-of-factly.  
  
"So what?" Malfoy challenged him.  
  
"So why don't you sit down and shut up? There are four other people in here, you know." Harry snapped, picking up his quill and twirling it in his fingers to keep himself calm.  
  
"God, you can count! See! I knew you had to be smart to be a Gryffindor!"  
  
"Who the hell are you to judge anybody anyway?" Harry asked, disgusted. Beside him, Ginny snorted in agreement.  
  
"Really."  
  
"You know, Malfoy...you don't even count. If you disappeared forever, no one would care. You don't even exist at this school anymore. Look at how popular and powerful you are now that everyone knows about your dad! No one's afraid of you! No one cares!" Harry said scathingly.  
  
Something flickered across the surface of Malfoy's eyes. He looked away for a moment and then licked his lips and let a nasty smile cross his arrogant features.   
  
"Well then, maybe I'll run out and join the goody-goodies. Walk the straight and narrow." Harry and Ginny couldn't help but laugh. "Join one of your little defense clubs..."  
  
"Yeah right. We don't want you." Harry said darkly.  
  
"I'm hurt."  
  
"You know why guys like you act so nasty toward others?" Ginny asked, looking Malfoy over in a calculating way. He gladly turned his attention on her and looked her over, as if considering her question.  
  
"This should be interesting...proceed..."  
  
"Its because you're afraid." Ginny said calmly, almost primly. Harry was forcibly reminded of Hermione.  
  
"Oh, GOD! You're so right! That's exactly why I don't hang around with you in your little clubs!"   
  
"You're a big coward." Ginny said with a heavy sigh. "You're so afraid we won't take you, that we can't look past your rich daddy and that bad boy attitude. You don't belong so you just have to walk all over us..." She shook her head and he turned his bemused smile into a scowl.  
  
  
  
"Well...it wouldn't have anything to do with your people being assholes...now would it?"  
  
"You wouldn't know. You don't even know any of us." She said, lifting an auburn eyebrow at him.  
  
"Well, I don't know any Muggles either, but I'm not gonna run out and join one of their fucking clubs."  
  
  
  
"Watch your mouth." Harry said, glancing at the door. Malfoy shot him a dirty glare.  
  
"I'm in the Charms Club." Justin piped up out of nowhere and Malfoy turned his attention on him.  
  
"Who cares?" He retorted in a flat voice. Justin looked down at the floor and mumbled something none of them could hear. "What was that?"  
  
"Umm...no one, I guess..." Justin said louder.  
  
"Leave him alone, Malfoy." Ginny snapped angrily and Malfoy looked back at her.   
  
"What? Is he your boyfriend too?" Ginny colored and clenched her fists together. "Aww...did I embarrass, you Red?" Draco drawled, smirking down at her from his perch on the bookshelf.  
  
"Look, why don't you guys shut up? We've got a match against Ravenclaw coming up and I'm not getting another detention because of you two." Harry hissed, clenching his fists and glancing at the open door again.  
  
"Oh, and wouldn't that be awful? Missing that bloody stupid game!"  
  
"You never seemed to have a problem with it before you were kicked off the Slytherin team. Bitter, are we?" Harry retorted with a certain amount of grim satisfaction.  
  
"Yes...It was so important in the scheme of things! I'll never be the same without it!" Malfoy said mockingly, clutching his heart again.   
  
"You miss it." Harry said sagely, narrowing his eyes. "It was the only thing you were good at. Without it you're nothing."  
  
"No, I've got a new hobby now!" Malfoy said, nodding his head and throwing more wispy locks of silver-blonde hair across his face.  
  
"Yeah? What's that?"  
  
"I'm trying to be just like you. I figure all I need is a Mudblood mother and a scar." Malfoy sneered.  
  
"Don't call her that..." Harry warned him.  
  
"Your mother was a Mud--er...Muggle born?" Justin asked, suddenly interested. Harry ignored him, but Draco smiled and glanced at Justin.  
  
"You're a Mudblood eh? I should have smelled the stink coming off you--" He cut off in mid-speech as a voice sounded in the corridor outside the Library. Quickly he jumped off the bookshelf, grabbed a chair and sat down between Harry and Ginny.   
  
Everyone tensely watched the doorway, then relaxed as The Fat Friar and The Gray Lady glided by and disappeared. Malfoy laughed, got up and started toward the open doorway.  
  
"There's not supposed to be any funny business!" Justin fretted anxiously, afraid of what Malfoy was going to do.  
  
"Muddy, have you finished your essay?" Malfoy said in a Snape-like voice, pointing a finger at Justin. He reached the doorway, poked his head into the hallway, and then pulled out his wand. Luna, who was still watching them all curiously, widened her eyes even more so than normal.  
  
"What are you going to do?" Ginny called curiously.  
  
"Drop dead if we're lucky." Harry muttered beside her.   
  
Draco waved his wand and uttered something too quiet for the rest of them to hear.  
  
"Malfoy...that's Hogwarts property...you really shouldn't mess with it! We could get into even more trouble!" Justin called, running a nervous hand through his curly hair.  
  
The door suddenly slammed shut of its own accord, clanging loudly against the frame. Malfoy quickly ran back to his seat, stashing his wand deep in the folds of his robes.   
  
"Malfoy, that's not funny! Un-jinx it!" Harry said, looking from Malfoy to the jinxed door.  
  
"You really should fix it..." Justin said, nearly bending his quill in half with worry.  
  
"Am I a genius?" Malfoy seemed very proud of himself.  
  
"No...you're an asshole." Harry growled. Malfoy waggled his eyebrows comically.  
  
"Funny!"   
  
"Un-jinx the door Malfoy!"  
  
"Everyone just shut up! I've done this before. Just stay calm!"  
  
The door was suddenly pushed open from outside, though not easily, since it wanted to lock back to the frame, its wooden bulk protesting. Slowly but surely, Professor Snape inched his way inside, skinny, greasy body popping through in time to get the ends of his robes caught.  
  
He tore them free and turned on them, completely livid. "Who put a Barricade Charm on this door?" Everyone kept their eyes down, white with fright under the Potions Master's terrifying glare. "Who did it?"  
  
"How are we supposed to know? We're not supposed to move, right?" Draco said to his desk, keeping his silver eyes pointed to table.  
  
"Why?" Snape growled, directing his question to Ginny, who jumped slightly.  
  
"We were just sitting here, like we were supposed to." She said in a small voice. Snape sneered at her and then turned his attention back to Malfoy, as if he knew who'd charmed it in the first place.  
  
"Who charmed the door?"  
  
"I think Peeves did it, sir." Malfoy offered, trying not to smile.  
  
"It just closed, sir." Harry found himself saying, much to his surprise.  
  
Snape ignored them both and turned his terrible gaze on Luna, still quiet and unblinking in the back. "WHO?"  
  
Luna stared at him, studied him like she'd never seen him a day in her life. Harry caught her gaze and held it. She tilted her head and then picked up the The Quibbler, turned it upside down and lost herself in it.  
  
"She was in her own world sir..." Malfoy said lazily. Snape wheeled on Malfoy and nearly growled with rage.  
  
"Give me your wand!"   
  
"I didn't bring it with me, sir. This is detention, after all." He said in a silky voice.  
  
"You want me to yank you out of that seat and shake it out of you, boy?" His hands itched like he really, really wanted to do it too.  
  
"I didn't do it, sir. Peeves came flying in here, raspberried us and slammed the door behind him..."   
  
  
  
"Give it to me, Malfoy." Snape continued, ignoring Malfoy's finger pointing at Peeves.  
  
"Excuse me, sir, why would anybody want to Charm a door?" Ginny interjected, then realized her mistake and quickly amended it. "Besides Peeves. He's always wreaking havoc. Everyone knows that."   
  
  
  
"Watch it, Weasley..." Snape growled at Ginny, his eyes flashing. He turned smartly on his heel and stalked over to the door. He tried a few counter-curses on it, but the door wouldn't jump away from the frame for anything longer than three seconds. Evidently, Malfoy had put a really, really powerful Barricade Charm on it.  
  
"Peeves really did a number on it, huh?" Malfoy said with no small amount of pride, leaning back in his chair and then attempting to slick back his hair. Snape wheeled on him and stared him down, greasy black hair caught on his hooked nose in a haphazard manner. He stared Malfoy down, as if daring him to admit what he'd done. Malfoy smiled blandly back at him.  
  
"You're not fooling anyone, Malfoy! The next stunt you pull will be your last. I will see you out of this school personally."  
  
Harry and Ginny exchanged looks again and with good reason. They had always been under the impression that Malfoy was Snape's favorite pupil. Something had changed. Snape glared and then turned on his heel again, heading for the door.  
  
"Suck my wand." Malfoy said under his breath. Snape immediately turned around to face him again.  
  
"What did you say?"  
  
"Suck. My. Wand." Malfoy said louder, lifting his chin and meeting Snape's burning gaze.  
  
"You just earned yourself another detention. And it won't be as cozy as this one."  
  
"Oh...Merlin, I'm crushed." Malfoy rolled his eyes.  
  
"Another, then? And perhaps you'd like me to take points from Slytherin, while I'm at it?" Snape suggested with barely concealed glee.  
  
"As If I cared." He said smartly, gritting his teeth.  
  
"Fine. Ten points from Slytherin and another detention for good measure. Instead of going to Azkaban like your father, you can stay here with me in my dungeon. What do you say? Are you through?"  
  
"No!" Malfoy said defiantly, crossing his arms over his chest.  
  
"I'm doing the wizarding world a favor! One less Death Eater on the loose."  
  
Malfoy hesitated a moment and then spat, "So!"   
  
"Another! And another ten points. Would you like another one?"  
  
"Yes!" Malfoy hissed like an angered snake.  
  
"You've got it! Another one you stupid little worm!" Snape hissed back, equally as angered.  
  
"Stop it Malfoy!" Ginny suddenly yelled, catching Malfoy's eye. He softened slightly under her wide brown-eyed gaze as she mouthed to him to stop.   
  
"Are you through?"  
  
"Does it look like I am?" He said in a dangerous voice, tearing his eyes away from Ginny's once more.  
  
"Another one, then! And ten points from Slytherin." Snape was clearly enjoying this. Malfoy looked him over as if he were some nasty little insect he'd found beneath a rock.  
  
"Do you really think I give a damn, Severus?"   
  
"Another...and twenty points." Snape said, not correcting his manners. Harry swallowed hard, torn between his both his hatred of Snape and of Malfoy. He didn't know whom he was rooting for. Malfoy just glared at Snape. "Are you done?"  
  
"How many is that?" He sneered in response, almost lazy in his anger.  
  
"Seven detentions. Including the one when we first came in and you asked Professor Snape here if he ever washed his greasy hair. And fifty points in all." Justin piped in, holding up his fingers, his eyes far away as he mentally counted them up.  
  
  
  
"And now it's eight and sixty points." Snape said nastily, sparing a moment to glare at Justin. "And you stay out of it!"  
  
"No sir, it's seven and fifty!" Justin exclaimed, holding up his fingers again as Luna gave a funny laugh. Everyone ignored her though.  
  
  
  
"Shut up Finch-Fletchley!" Snape snapped and turned back to Malfoy. "You're mine Malfoy. Eight detentions. Eight of them. Just you and me. I daresay your fellow Slytherins will be most displeased by your loss of points..."  
  
"Like I care what they think." Malfoy said forcefully, his lips twisting into a carefree smirk.  
  
"I know you do. You know something, Malfoy? If you spent less time worrying about what others thought of you and your foolish family pride, you'd be better off and you'd certainly be better off on my good side." Snape sneered, apparently unaware that the rest of them were listening. The tips of Malfoy's ears went red. Snape turned to the rest of them. "Since...someone...has been so kind as to Charm the doors, they will remain closed, but be aware that I will be right down the hall. If I have to come in here again, I will not hesitate to transfigure you all into stinkbeetles and keep you in a jar for the rest of your lives."   
  
He turned around smartly, walked to the door, which was still trying to keep him out and managed to squeeze through. It slammed shut with a resounding crash.   
  
Everyone stared at Malfoy, not sure of what to say. Harry saw something flicker across the surface of his silvery eyes as he hit the desk with his fist.   
  
He thought it might have been regret, but he could never be sure.  
  
(end chapter)  
  
***** 


	2. Part Two

The Most Convenient Definitions (2/4)  
  
A/N: Thanks for reviewing!  
  
****  
  
Quiet once again settled over the Library in the wake of Snape and Malfoy's argument. Malfoy sulked at the table behind Harry, his feet up on the table, arms crossed sullenly over his chest. The rest of them wouldn't look at him, nor were they especially interested in the essay Snape had assigned them.   
  
Ginny rested her head on her arms and stared into space, chewing on her lip once more. Harry started playing with his robes, content on picking strings out of the hem and tying them into knots, then making them dance on the table. Justin played with his quill, shifting uneasily in his chair and then pulled out his journal, writing furiously in the leather-bound book. Luna just sat in the back, staring off into space for a while, her wand behind her ear. Before long, she took out a copy of The Quibbler out of her overstuffed bag and hid herself behind its pages.   
  
An hour dwindled away and soon they were all five succumbing to the quiet, drifting off into sleep in various states of discomfort. Ginny with her head on her arm, Harry twisted around in his seat, head cushioned on the back of the uncomfortable chair, Justin sitting straight up, his head thrown back, Malfoy sprawled across two chairs and Luna with her chin on the table, The Quibbler crackling beneath her arms.   
  
The door cracked open and Snape slowly forced his way inside. He stopped in front of their tables, sneering at them from behind his curtain of dark, greasy hair.   
  
"Wake up!"   
  
No one answered or stirred. His scowl got even deeper and his eyes glinted maliciously.   
  
"Who has to go to the bathroom?" He asked in a wheedling voice.  
  
Every hand raised straight up in the air. He smiled grimly.  
  
****  
  
Half an hour later saw them all sitting around the Library, the Barricade Charm still on the door and Snape back in the teacher's lounge. Not content with just sitting there doing nothing---none of them, even Justin, had touched the essay--they were all attempting to fill time.  
  
Justin peered out from behind a bookcase, his nose buried in a copy of Incurable Icky Intestinal Irritations. He could see Malfoy sitting back on the bookshelf he'd been at before he'd charmed the door. A large book was in his hands, his loose hair falling across his face as he flipped through its pages.   
  
Harry was standing a few feet away, stretching the kinks out of his Seeking hand. He couldn't afford to get a cramp in it from sitting around for so long, not when the Inner House Cup was at stake. Without Malfoy on the Slytherin team to give him competition, Ravenclaw was now the team to beat.   
  
Ginny was sitting at the table, brushing her hair and looking ready to storm out of there at any second. She'd undone her robes, a blue sweater peaking out and setting off her red hair. Luna Lovegood was still sitting at her table in the corner, The Quibbler once again in her hands. Harry glanced at her a couple of times, still wondering what she'd done to get detention.  
  
There was a sudden tearing sound and everyone's attention snapped to Malfoy. He ripped out a few pages from the thick book and tossed them into the air. They fluttered down like doves. Harry's eyes narrowed as Malfoy did it again, tossing the pages aside with an intense scowl on his face.  
  
"Very intelligent." Harry said dryly.   
  
"You're right. It's naughty to destroy such wonderful literature. Lockhart's a genius." Malfoy responded, ripping more pages out and tossing them up in the air. Harry looked at the cover and saw their former professor winking at them, his smile never faltering.   
  
"Poor bloke. His mind still isn't right." Ginny spoke up, putting down her brush and looking at Malfoy, who raised his head and flung his long hair out of his face.   
  
"I hear he's still in St. Mungo's." Justin piped up from behind the shelf. Harry quickly looked at his feet, remembering last Christmas. Malfoy tossed more pages at Justin, who ducked them.   
  
"Big deal. Too bad he left and we all had to suffer through that werewolf third year." He said dismissively, chucking Lockhart's book aside and grabbing the card catalogue. He pulled out cards and started rearranging them in out of order.   
  
"Speak for yourself." Harry snapped, immediately riled. Malfoy smirked at him.  
  
"You think I'd speak for you? I don't even know your language, Parselmouth." He retorted and then glanced at Ginny. Harry caught the glance and narrowed his eyes. Why was he so interested in her?   
  
Harry sat down at the end of the table next to Ginny. "So, what did you do to get in here?"  
  
Ginny blinked, glanced at Malfoy and then leant back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest. Her face went hard and defiant. "Snuck into Hogsmeade last Tuesday."  
  
Harry's jaw nearly dropped open. That was extremely against school rules. "You skipped class?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"What did Ron say?"  
  
"He doesn't know. And you'd better not tell him." Ginny added quickly, glaring at Harry in a way he'd never seen before.  
  
"Why did you do it?" Harry asked, frowning hard, his jet-black hair in his eyes. He tossed his head, dislodging the strands. Ginny looked him over with shrewd eyes and then licked her lips.   
  
"Felt like it. You, Ron and Hermione aren't the only ones who can break rules you know."   
  
"But that's...we do it for...we always have a reason!" Harry protested, flustered. Ginny sighed heavily.  
  
"Maybe I had a reason?" She snapped, eyebrow rising slightly. Harry stared at her.  
  
"If its illegal..."  
  
"Of course it wasn't! Just felt like it. I didn't want to go to Potions and it was a nice day. I thought I might nip down and go shopping." She said simply. Harry stared. "What? Like I can't be bad once in a while? I'm not a baby, Harry! Why is this such a shock to you?"  
  
"Its not...just...you're Ginny. You're not...you don't do stuff like that!" Harry said, clearly flustered.  
  
"Its obvious you don't know me very well Harry. You and my overbearing, overprotective brothers are constantly trying to treat me like a newborn! Like I might snap in half if everyone doesn't wrap me in wool! Well I'm not going to break! I'm on the Quidditch team for Merlin's sake! I fought with you in the Ministry last year!" Ginny pointed out, sitting up in her seat and glaring at Harry. He was slightly taken aback.  
  
"We never thought you were...weak...just..."   
  
"You just thought I was a spoiled little bratty kid sister, right?" Ginny said bitterly. Harry's mouth closed shut. Malfoy smiled.  
  
"What do you know...little Weasley's a bad girl at heart." He drawled in appreciation. Ginny glared at him.  
  
"I am not. I'm just tired of being treated like a princess when I'm not! No one knows me. Nobody bothers to look! Especially my parents!"  
  
"HA!"   
  
Everyone's attention swiveled to Luna Lovegood, forgotten and ignored at her table in the corner. The Quibbler was lying on the desk. She glared at Ginny, then went back to reading The Quibbler. Harry smiled.  
  
"Shut up!" Ginny snapped and wheeled back around to face Harry.  
  
"You were just feeling sorry for yourself." Harry told her, leaning against the bookshelf.   
  
"If I didn't, no one else would." Ginny said sullenly, looking at the scratches and ink stains on the tabletop sullenly.  
  
"Poor baby." Harry muttered beneath his breath, wishing he had parents to treat him like a baby once in a while. Behind him, Malfoy jumped off the bookshelf, looming next to him like a vampire in his black robes.  
  
"Scarhead..."   
  
"What?" Harry snapped warily as Malfoy stepped in front of him.  
  
"You get along with those Muggles you live with?" He asked testily, throwing another glance Ginny's way. Ginny's attention came back to Malfoy and she sucked in a breath.  
  
"If I say yes I'm an idiot, right?" Harry hazarded, green eyes narrowed at the slightly taller Slytherin.   
  
"You're an idiot anyway." Malfoy snorted. "If you say you get along with them, you're also a liar. Who could stand being around stinking Muggles, after all? It's disgusting. Of course...after losing your mother--"  
  
Malfoy smirked derisively down at Harry and started to walk away. Harry felt his anger, so close to the surface these days anyway, rise and crash against his heart. He found himself pushing Malfoy from behind; he stumbled slightly and turned around to glare at Harry.  
  
"If we weren't in detention, I'd beat you like I did at that Quidditch match last year." Harry growled. Malfoy smirked.  
  
"You and which Weasley brother?" He replied with an acid tongue. Harry got up in his face, his fists clenched together.   
  
Justin, who had been watching from the bookshelves, came up, sensing danger. He put his hand on both Harry and Malfoy's shoulders in an attempt to mollify them.   
  
"Listen blokes…" He started to say, but they both pushed his hand away. Harry gave Malfoy a seething look and pushed past Justin, heading to the table next to Luna's. Luna looked up at him from under her eyelashes, but didn't say anything. "I...well I don't get along with my...my parents either. My mother's view of parental compassion is...non-existent..."   
  
Malfoy gave Justin a disbelieving look and held up his hands. "You're every parent's dream, alright?"  
  
Justin sighed and lowered his gaze. "You'd think that..."  
  
"Look, I can see where you'd be disgusted about your Muggle parentage, but face it, you're at the top of our class. You're in all the academic clubs and you have no life. What would your filthy parents have to complain about?" Malfoy asked with a heavy, disbelieving sigh.  
  
Before Justin could answer, Harry angrily interjected, "Do you have to insult everyone?"  
  
"I'm just being honest with him. Learn the difference, Scarhead."   
  
"You could at least call him by his name." Harry mumbled, knowing Justin could fight his own battles.  
  
"Yeah. What is your name anyway?" Draco asked, as if he didn't know.  
  
"Justin Finch-Fletchley." Justin said sarcastically, crossing his arms over his chest as he sat down at the table Malfoy had been sitting at earlier.   
  
"My apologies..." He trailed off, going around to the front of Ginny's table. He bent down, his face at her level. She looked back at him expectantly. "And what's your name little girl?"  
  
Ginny considered and then said in a loud, clear voice, "Ginny."  
  
"Just 'Ginny'?"   
  
"No...Its short for Virginia." She sniffed.   
  
"VIRGINia?" Malfoy annunciated with barely contained glee. Ginny looked slightly disgruntled at his mockery.  
  
"What? Its a family name!" She said in protest, clutching her brush in her fingers.  
  
"No, its a fat girl's name!" Malfoy nodded matter-of-factly at her. Ginny immediately glared at him.  
  
"I'm not fat!" She exclaimed angrily, tossing her brush down on the table with a clatter.   
  
"Well not right now, but I could see things taking a turn for the worst in the future. You see I'm not sure if you know this Virginia...but there are two kinds of fat people. There are fat people who were born to be fat, and then there are fat people who were once thin but became fat...so when you look at them you can almost see the thin person inside. Isn't your mother rather dumpy herself? You know what they say about genetics..." Malfoy said, smiling serenely at her. "You're going to get married, have a few red-haired disgraces to the wizarding name and then..."  
  
Malfoy mimed Ginny getting fat, puffing out his cheeks and hands. Ginny glared at him, seething with anger. She lifted two fingers at him in a defiant gesture. Malfoy's mouth opened in mock shock.  
  
"Such naughty gestures from such a good girl!"  
  
"I'm not that good!" She said rather resentfully. Malfoy smirked and leant forward on the table, his weight on his elbows.  
  
"I forgot. You're a bad girl, aren't you? So...how bad are you Virginia Weasley?" He asked in a whisper, invading Ginny's eyesight so that all she could see was Malfoy's face before hers. She didn't answer, just glared at him apprehensively. Malfoy tried her again. "Virginia...are you a...virgin?"  
  
Her eyes flashed at him. He let a soft smile slide up his lips.  
  
"I'd bet a million Galleons you are."  
  
"Why don't you just shut up?" Ginny said in a harsh whisper, her blood racing.   
  
"Have you ever kissed a boy on the mouth?" Ginny glared. "Have you ever been felt up? Over the bra, under your robes, shoes off...hoping like hell that you don't get caught by Filch?"   
  
  
  
"Don't make me sick." Ginny managed around the lump in her throat. Malfoy ignored her and kept going, his tongue sliding over his teeth, one finger lifting to pull a bright red strand away from Ginny's forehead. She flinched away.  
  
  
  
"Over your knickers...no bra...jumper up over your head, skirt rolled up over your hips past curfew and out of bounds?" Malfoy persisted, enjoying the way Ginny's breath shortened.  
  
  
  
"Leave her alone!" Harry suddenly interjected, not willing to listen anymore. His shoulders were rigid and his teeth were gritted. Ginny glanced at him and drew a sharp breath. Malfoy stood and slowly faced him, tilting his head in amusement. He glanced at Ginny again and Harry growled, "I said leave her alone!"  
  
"You going to make me, Potter?" Malfoy challenged.  
  
"Yes." Harry hissed. Malfoy rolled his mercury eyes.  
  
"Again I have to ask--you and how many of her stupid brothers?"   
  
"Just me. Just you and me. I've beaten you before. Hermione's beaten you before!" Harry said with a nasty laugh. Malfoy's face went a slight shade of purple. "Anytime you're ready, Malfoy."   
  
Malfoy gave a short chuckle and then pulled his fist back to slam it into Harry's face. Harry, Seeker-trained and fast, grabbed his hand and twisted it behind his back.   
  
Ginny gasped and so did Luna. Malfoy struggled in Harry's arms, but Harry, having spent most of his life dodging Dudley and his gang, knew how to fight. He pushed Malfoy down on the ground with a thump and shoved his face against the floor. Malfoy struggled and then growled.  
  
"I don't want to get into it with you, Potter!" His voice was slightly muffled.  
  
Harry released him, ready to hit him if he so much as winked at him. Malfoy righted himself, shook his hair out of his face and glared at him.   
  
"Why not?" Harry challenged, not believing a word he said. Malfoy slowly backed up the aisle; moving past Harry and Justin and coming to a stop at the table Luna was still sitting at, watching them all silently.   
  
"Simple. I'd kill you. I'd kill you and everyone would be so upset that their favorite little hero was dead. And I don't care enough about you to bother with." Malfoy said, his hands in the pockets of his robes. He stared at Harry and Harry stared back.   
  
Harry shook his head and turned around. "Chicken..."  
  
Luna made another gasping noise and Harry whirled around to see Malfoy with his wand out, pointed straight at him. Harry stared him down once more, daring him. Malfoy swallowed hard and then pocketed it with a flick of his wrist.   
  
  
  
Harry took a deep breath. "Let's just end this right now. You don't look at her, you don't talk to her, you don't even THINK about her! Understand?"  
  
Malfoy glanced at Ginny whose brown eyes were large and tear-filled. He swallowed hard once more and turned his attention back to Harry. "I'm trying to help her."  
  
Harry opened his mouth to retort something, but the sound of someone trying to force their way through the Barricade Charm on the door made them all jump. Malfoy quickly rushed forward, taking a seat at the table next to Ginny's as Harry resumed his seat next to her. Justin slipped off his table as quickly as he could and stared straight ahead.   
  
The door finally opened enough to allow someone entrance and they were all relieved to see that is wasn't Snape again. Filch's sour face greeted them from the doorway as he wrenched the door open a few more inches to allow Mrs. Norris to slink her way inside, her huge lamp-like eyes studying them seriously.  
  
"Look at them all my sweet, sitting there like the common criminals they are. Not even doing anything. If Umbridge were still here, they'd be screaming in pain..." Filch said in a loud voice they were meant to hear. Everyone exchanged glances.   
  
Filch studied the door with a disgruntled expression on his face.   
  
"What are you doing, Mr. Filch, sir?" Malfoy said in an oily voice, leaning forward to watch the Caretaker with interest.   
  
"Professor Snape sent me in here to fix this door someone charmed." Filch squinted at him, then pulled a large bottle from the pocket of his moldy coat.   
  
"What's that?" Malfoy asked again.  
  
"All Purpose Charm Dissolver." Filch grunted. Malfoy's eyes narrowed and he sat back, his face dark. Everyone watched as Filch applied liberal amounts of the orange-ish colored liquid inside the bottle on the door. He tried it a few times and finally it unstuck from the frame, pulling open normally.   
  
Satisfied, he stood up and stuffed the bottle back into his coat pocket. He glanced back at the five of them in disgust, sniffing thickly.  
  
"Filch?" Malfoy hazarded, leaning back in his chair, his hands behind his head. Filch gave him a nasty look and narrowed his eyes.  
  
"What?"  
  
"May I ask you a question?"   
  
"I suppose..." Filch answered warily. Malfoy smiled and cast a sidelong glance at Harry.   
  
"How does one become a...servant." Filch's face drained of color and he looked on the verge of exploding. Malfoy amended his statement easily. "I mean...a school caretaker."  
  
"Why do you ask?"  
  
Malfoy once again glanced at Harry, who was staring at him curiously. "Oh, I just want to know how one becomes a servant, er, caretaker...because Potter here wants to become one once he's flunked out of Hogwarts."   
  
Harry glared. Filch gave a short growl and stared each of them in the face.  
  
"You think that's what I did? Flunked, did I?" Here he glanced at Harry sharply; both of them still remembered the incident in his second year very well. "I happen to enjoy my job! I'd enjoy it a lot more if they'd bring back the old punishments for you wretched brats. And I'll tell you something right now, Mr. Malfoy...I know things. I know all the secrets of Hogwarts. And I'll find out...little snake..."  
  
Harry wanted to laugh. Filch had to be lying about knowing all the secrets of Hogwarts, but if he was lying to Malfoy, Harry didn't have a problem with it. Malfoy looked slightly ill though. His eye twitched and he went pale.  
  
"You think about that, Mr. Malfoy. Think about it real hard. I'll find out what it does..." Filch said, then turned to leave the Library, Mrs. Norris at his heels.  
  
The door slammed shut in his wake, leaving them all to glance curiously at Malfoy, who scowled and looked down at his hands, obviously thinking of something.   
  
A cunning smile slowly stretched across his pointed face.  
  
****  
  
Boredom settled around them again. Everyone had moved back to his or her original seats and the door was still closed (Filch hadn't opened it again). Malfoy, not content with merely humming any longer, decided to whistle, breaking the silence with a jarring, shrill sound.  
  
The strains of "Weasley is Our King" dipped and spun through the Library and much to her surprise, Ginny started whistling it too, just to relieve the boredom. Soon Justin joined in, then Harry, who couldn't stop himself. Luna joined in toward the end, whistling louder than all of them.   
  
The un-charmed door opened easily, clanging shut behind the black-clad form of Professor Snape. He flinched at the sound of the song, probably reminded of the match Slytherin had lost so recently to Gryffindor. He glared and the whistling died out.  
  
"You have thirty minutes for lunch." He said in a cold, bored voice.  
  
Harry looked around, thinking of how Madam Pince hated them to eat in the Library. "Here?"  
  
"Yes, here, Potter."  
  
"Shouldn't we be eating in the Great Hall with the first and second years..?" He protested, but Snape only stared at first Ginny, then Justin and Luna. He didn't bother looking at Malfoy. "I think Madam Pince would prefer it."  
  
"Well I don't care what she'd prefer, Potter." Snape said, crossing his arms over his chest.   
  
"Excuse me, sir? Will refreshments be made available to us?" Malfoy asked, smirking.  
  
"We're pretty thirsty, sir." Harry said, nodding his head.  
  
"I have a very low tolerance for dehydration." Ginny spoke up earnestly. Everyone looked furtively around as Snape continued to glare with his Not Amused face.  
  
"I've seen it, sir. Its pretty gross." Harry said with a small smile. Snape took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling as if asking for patience.   
  
"The Headmaster has insisted that the house-elves make you something to eat. And drink." He said, tapping his fingers on his arms as if he didn't agree with Dumbledore in the slightest.  
  
"Oh! I'll got get it, then!" Malfoy said, making to stand up. Snape glared at him like a large bird of prey, his lip curling over his teeth.  
  
"SIT DOWN! You think I'm going to have you roam these halls, Mr. Malfoy? No, I think not." He looked around at them all and pointed to Harry. "You...and you!"  
  
He pointed straight at Luna, who was staring at something on the wall, not concerned with what was going on.  
  
"You! Lovegood! On your feet!" Luna stood up as Harry did the same. She stared ahead, her wand behind her ear, orange radish earrings swinging against her neck. Harry bit his lip. "You'll have to go to the kitchens, though I daresay you already know how to get in there, eh, Potter?"  
  
Harry nodded coolly and Snape gestured for them to go ahead. Luna marched forward, looking down at her feet. Out in the cool hallway, they parted from Snape, who gave them both a warning not to dawdle and then disappeared into the teacher's lounge.   
  
Harry and Luna marched on, Harry slightly ahead. He could feel Luna's eyes on him. His curiosity was getting to him.   
  
What in the world had Luna done to get detention?   
  
He turned around slightly, looking over his shoulder at her as she marched along behind him, her wide eyes on him.   
  
"So...what are you hungry for?" Luna just stared. Harry felt a blush creep up his neck. "Er...forget I asked."  
  
Their footsteps rang along the dark corridor as they passed bored, time-blackened paintings, the occupants peering at them through the dirty canvas. Harry could still feel Luna's eyes on him. He wanted to turn around and tell her to cut it out, but he didn't want to meet her protuberant eyes again.   
  
Ever since last term, he hadn't had much contact with Luna Lovegood. As she'd always done, she wandered the corridors alone, seemingly not interested in anyone else or anything outside her own head. He'd watched her a few times, but hadn't approached her. He didn't really know her all that well anyway, but he'd had the intense feeling that she was avoiding him on purpose.   
  
"Harry...what did you do to get detention?" Luna's misty voice asked out of nowhere. Harry turned around, stopping dead in his tracks. His stomach gave a little plummet.   
  
"What did you do?" He asked her right back, but she just half-smiled and shrugged.  
  
"I asked you first."   
  
Harry blew out a breath and leaned against the wall. While he didn't know her that well, he knew he could tell her anything. She heard the voices behind the veil and she could see the thestrals. And she was part of the D.A. and the false rescue mission at the Ministry. She was on his side.   
  
She stared at him with her strange, far away eyes. The truth wavered on the tip of his tongue. He opened his mouth to spill it out to the air, but it dived right back down his throat, where he choked on it. Shame burned in his stomach.  
  
He swallowed hard and hit the stone wall with the curl of his fist.   
  
"I'm here today because...Dumbledore doesn't want me to look like I'm getting special treatment because of...of me being me. Everyone treats me differently, you know. I'm a hero. Not that I mean to be...I just am. It's my destiny even if I don't want it to be. That's about how involved I am in what's happening to me." He lied glumly, thinking of the prophecy he was being trained to fulfill.  
  
Luna nodded wisely and then fixed her gaze more sharply on him, suddenly not so dreamy. "That's fascinating. Now why are you really in detention?"   
  
Harry's stomach dropped again. Luna bit down on her lip, attempting to shake her straggly hair out of her face. Harry looked her over and then shook his head.  
  
"Forget it." He mumbled, moving off down the hallway, heading for the kitchens below.   
  
Luna's hand suddenly clamped down on his wrist and he turned to face her. Her pale eyebrows were drawn up in concern.  
  
"I'm sorry. I know its tough. My dad...he was telling me--trying to get me to get an interview with you again, this time about the prophecy at the Ministry. I told him no." Luna said, chewing on her lip.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I...I didn't think it was any of his business. He...he wanted me to start hanging around you and picking up little tidbits about what's going on. Like Rita Skeeter used to do."   
  
Something fell into place.  
  
"Is that why you've been avoiding me?"  
  
Luna looked down at her feet. "Yes."  
  
"Well, what did your dad say when you told him no?" Harry asked curiously. Luna looked at her hand, still on his wrist and let go of it quickly.  
  
"He was mad." Her voice was slightly hitched and her eyes swam a little. Harry's stomach clenched. He had a feeling there was more to it than that.   
  
"I'm sorry Luna." He said, shifting from foot to foot, not sure what to say. "Do you want to talk about it?"  
  
She opened her mouth to say something and someone suddenly came pelting down the corridor. Harry saw the blur out of the corner of his eyes and just managed to push Luna out of the way.   
  
They both landed against the wall, Harry pressing Luna into the stones. Their eyes met for a moment, Harry's stomach flip-flopped in a familiar way, and then there was a high-pitched squeal and both their attentions snapped up to the little man floating near the ceiling.  
  
"Wee potty Potter! And the LOON!" Peeves the Poltergeist screeched, turning upside down and grinning widely. Harry leaned away from Luna and straightened his robes.  
  
"Buzz off Peeves." He growled, completely disgruntled.  
  
"Rude ickle Potter!" Peeves bellowed with glee and then started chucking paintings off the walls, much to the protest of the paintings and Harry and Luna, who ducked and had to run all the way to the painting of the fruit that was the entrance to the kitchens just to avoid him.  
  
****  
  
Ginny leaned her head against the bookshelf, staring into space. Her mouth was dry and she felt her stomach rumble. It had been a long time since breakfast. She thought of Colin and everyone else in Hogsmeade, probably enjoying warm butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks or raiding Honeydukes and Zonko's.   
  
She let out a jealous sigh that called Malfoy's attention to her. He was sitting on top of a table, cross-legged, a large book entitled Medical Maladies across his lap. He wasn't tearing the pages out of it though; he was flipping through it and making faces at the horrible, moving pictures inside.  
  
He looked her over in his cold, calculating way and then smiled. "Hey Ginny, want to see a bloke who dipped his penis in a Swelling Potion? Its quite exciting!"  
  
"No thank you." Ginny said, making a face at him. He smiled and plowed on, glancing down at the moving photograph with interest.  
  
"How do you think he rides a broom?" He mused aloud. Ginny rolled her eyes and turned away in disgust. "Ginny...would you ever consider dating a guy who needed a Swelling Potion?"  
  
"Why can't you just sod off?" She wondered, half amused and half annoyed at him.  
  
"I mean, if he was a nice, boring hero like Potter or something. Rich, sickeningly sweet and had a Firebolt--though I doubt you could ride on it with him, since his cock would weigh the broom down..." Malfoy tested her, but Ginny ignored him.  
  
"You know what I wished I was doing?"  
  
"Watch what you say, Gin...Finch-Fletchley's a virgin." Malfoy said, gesturing to Justin, who was sitting with his legs drawn up on a chair, his chin on his knees. Justin looked up, went pale and glanced at Ginny.  
  
"A virgin?" He demanded, his mouth moving like a fish out of water.  
  
"I wish I was visiting my brother Charlie in Romania..." Ginny said, ignoring both boys as she stared into space.  
  
"I'm...I'm not a virgin!" Justin protested, his eyes wide, a lock of curly brown hair over his forehead. Malfoy stared at him disbelievingly.  
  
"When have you ever sex?" He demanded. Justin squinted his eyes shut, swallowed hard and bit his lip.  
  
"I've done it...loads of times."  
  
"Name one." Malfoy demanded, leaning forward and dropping Medical Maladies on the floor with a bang.  
  
Justin shrugged. "She's a Muggle. Lives in Liverpool, next door to my parents. You wouldn't know her." He said dismissively, looking around. Malfoy sniggered.  
  
"Ever shagged any of the girls at Hogwarts?"  
  
Justin glanced at Ginny and put a finger to his lips, then made a gesture toward her; her back was still turned and she didn't notice him, her mind far away in Romania. Malfoy's eyes gleamed.  
  
"OH! You and Ginny did it!" Malfoy announced knowingly, smiling as Ginny whipped around and glared at them both.  
  
"What are you talking about?" She demanded, looking first at Justin, and then at Malfoy, who only smiled back seriously.  
  
"Its nothing. Nothing." Justin said, his eyes wide as he tried to steer the conversation away from the topic at hand. He glanced at Malfoy. "Let's just drop it. We'll talk about it later."  
  
"No! What are you talking about?" Ginny demanded more fiercely.  
  
"Well, Justin's trying to convince me that in addition to a number of Muggle girls in Liverpool, that you and he are...having relations." The way he said it made Ginny realize exactly what he meant. She gaped at Justin.  
  
  
  
"Disgusting git!" She exclaimed, hands on her hips.  
  
"No I'm not! I swear! Draco said I was a virgin and I said I wasn't! That's all!" Justin protested, looking terrified.  
  
"Then why did you gesture to Ginny for?" Malfoy prodded, all wide-eyed innocence.  
  
"I don't appreciate lying, Justin." Ginny said, her brown eyes burning a hole through Justin's. He motioned to Malfoy with panicked impatience.  
  
"He's lying! Not me!"  
  
"Oh...so you weren't motioning to Ginny? Because I saw you..." Malfoy said in a wheedling tone.  
  
"He's lying! You know that? Right Gin?" Justin protested, wondering how fast he would have to be to outrun Ron if this ever got back to him.   
  
"Were you, or were you not, gesturing to Ginny?" Malfoy insisted as Ginny continued to glare daggers at them both. Justin gave up, throwing up his hands.  
  
"Yes. Okay? But...I just didn't want her to know I was a...a virgin, okay?" Justin caved, resting his chin on his drawn up knees. Malfoy just stared at him; Justin stared back, angered. "Excuse me for being a virgin. Not all of us are rich Draco Malfoy, you know!"  
  
  
  
Ginny laughed and cast a sympathetic look at Justin. "Why didn't you want me to know you were a virgin, Justin?"   
  
"Because its private! Its my private business!" Justin exclaimed, looking stricken at the choice of subject. Malfoy gave a short laugh.  
  
  
  
"Doesn't sound like your privates are doing any business, Justin." His eye caught Ginny's as Justin blushed. Ginny glared at him for a moment, seeing a challenge in Malfoy's mercury eyes. She smiled slowly.  
  
"Most of the boys at Hogwarts are virgins, Justin. Don't worry about it." She arched her eyebrow at Malfoy, never taking her eyes off him.   
  
"Really?" Justin asked, suddenly curious.  
  
"Yeah. I mean...its not like there's any place we can go to...do that sort of thing. I mean...there are, but who has the time? And who wants Filch to walk in on them doing THAT anyway? It would scar you for life!" She explained with a laugh, piling her hair on top of her head and arching her neck. Malfoy's eyes widened slightly as he realized she was definitely challenging him. He rose to the occasion magnificently.  
  
"No...not really. He's surprisingly understanding." Malfoy said coolly. Ginny's eyebrows rose and Justin looked at him in surprise. There was definitely a story there…   
  
She opened her mouth, maybe to ask him about it, maybe to tell him off, but never got the words out. The door swung open and Luna came running in, followed by Harry. Luna's hair was mussed, pulled out of its knot and spilling in dirty blonde waves around her face. Harry's glasses were askew and they were both panting.   
  
Several large plates of food and two pitchers of pumpkin juice were hovering in the air beside them; they'd obviously put hover charms on them to make them easier to carry up from the kitchens.  
  
"What happened to you two?" Justin asked curiously, getting to his feet, his stomach rumbling.  
  
"Looks like Loony and Potter were testing your theory about Hogwarts, Gin. Jealous?" Malfoy whispered in Ginny's ear as he passed. Ginny ignored him and went over to the plates.  
  
"We got attacked by Peeves in the corridor on the way to the kitchens. And he was waiting for us on our way back, the little blighter." Harry explained, waving the food down to the tables with a clatter. "Anyway, you'd better tuck in, because I have a feeling Snape meant it when he said we only had thirty minutes for lunch."  
  
Everyone grabbed something off the trays; the house elves obviously didn't care that they were in detention because they'd pulled out all the stops--probably Dobby's doing. He'd nearly knocked Harry down when they'd entered the kitchens.   
  
Malfoy sat behind Harry and Ginny once more, watching them through narrowed eyes as they talked back and forth in low tones. His lip curled as Ginny laughed at something Harry said. Anger flowed through him and he looked around for an easy target. Justin was sitting next to him, quietly finishing the rest of his lunch, a book about Muggles open on the table beside him.  
  
Malfoy got up and moved next to him, glaring down at the open pages of the book. "You're a Mudbl--Muggle-born, right?"   
  
Justin glanced warily at him. "Yeah..."  
  
"You like living with Muggles during summer holidays? I know Potter does." Malfoy said, glancing at Harry, who was finishing his own sandwich. Harry's brow furrowed as Malfoy leaned closer the book. There was a diagram of a Muggle family at Christmas time, decorating a tree by hand.  
  
"I...well, they're my family." Justin said, clearly not getting what Malfoy was insinuating. Harry shook his head, waiting for whatever Malfoy was going to pull. Malfoy read the passage on Christmas and blinked slowly.  
  
"So...this is what Muggles do? Its all very common isn't it?"  
  
"My family isn't common!" Justin exclaimed, ready to defend his lineage. Malfoy rolled his eyes and stood up, seeing that he had everyone's attention on him again.  
  
"This is my impression of life in Finch-Fletchley's...home." He said it like it was a nasty word that left a horrible taste in his mouth. He walked to the center of the library and said in a loud, overly simple voice that reminded Harry of the crazy person he'd seen while shopping with Aunt Petunia. He battled back and forth with himself, playing several people at once, one of them supposedly Justin.  
  
"Hey son!" He said in the loud, simple voice.  
  
"Yes my filthy Muggle father?" He affected an imitation of Justin's voice, but overly sweet.  
  
"We're going to go and chop down a tree by hand! Want to come and do menial labor because we're too stupid to do magic like good folk?"  
  
"Aww...gee, dad, I'd love to! But I have homework!"  
  
"Its okay, son! You can do it in the car! Isn't our son the best Mudblood ever, darling?"  
  
"Yes! It's so nice to have a wizard in the family! How useful he'll be! We'll use him up like we do everything and taint good, proper wizard families by having him around!" He exclaimed in a high-pitched female voice. He broke off in his little act as he caught everyone glaring at him.  
  
Justin's eyes were on the floor. He looked like he was going to be physically sick. Harry watched him for a second and then looked up at Malfoy.  
  
"Oh yeah? If Justin's family isn't proper, as you put it, what about yours? You're always going on about proper wizarding pride. Tell us what's its like to be a Malfoy." His voice was a sharp dagger and Malfoy's eyes suddenly blazed with something other than anger.  
  
"My family is very easy, Potter." He said carefully, not backing down. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a second. When he started to talk, it was in a cold, familiar voice that reminded Harry so much of Lucius Malfoy that he got goosebumps at the sound of it.  
  
"Worthless, idiotic, simple, common little snipe! I see you've lost to that Potter at Quidditch once again. How dare you let that half-blood beat a Malfoy! I'm ashamed to call you my son. You're a shame to your mother and I. When I was your age, I was the star Seeker on the Slytherin team. Its quite clear to me that you will never be more than average, boy."  
  
"I'm sorry sir, I tried. I did. I wanted to please you." He said in his normal Draco voice.   
  
"Well, you managed to disappoint him again, Draco darling. There's no use crying. Crying is for weak wizards. I won't have a crying boy in my house!" He said in a female voice, just as cold his father's. Harry's stomach tumbled over uncomfortably.  
  
"I'm sorry. I'll try better next time."   
  
"Good. And until then, you will just have to take your punishment like a man." He said in his father's voice once more and then mimed lifting a wand. "Crucio!"   
  
His voice rang out in the air between them all and for a moment, Harry wasn't sure he'd heard correctly. Ginny made a soft, strangled noise in her throat, her eyes suddenly filled with tears. Malfoy seemed to shake himself back to the present.   
  
"Is that for real?" Harry asked in a hushed voice. Malfoy's lip curled.   
  
"I'd invite you over to see for yourself, but my father and mother aren't up to taking visitors thanks to you."  
  
"I don't believe it." Harry said automatically, not believing that even Lucius Malfoy would put an Unforgivable Curse on his own son for merely losing at Quidditch.   
  
"You don't believe me?" Malfoy said, eyebrow lifting, jaw set.  
  
"No. I don't." Harry said, though not completely sure he meant it or not. Malfoy smiled without a hint of amusement and walked over to Harry, pulling the sleeve of his robes up to reveal his pale, right forearm. He pushed it in front of Harry's face so he could see a scar there.  
  
Harry was shocked to see it was the Dark Mark, though not like the ones the Death Eaters had. It had been seared onto his skin with a hot brand, the skin puckered and white, not black. Harry stared and then looked up at Draco in terrified question.  
  
"That's what you get when you don't have proper wizard pride in my household. That's what happens when you defy my father. When you're second to Harry Potter and when you let a Mudblood girl beat you in every class and exam." Malfoy said in a low, trembling voice. "But he promised me that as soon as I'm old enough, the true mark of the Dark Lord will be put on my other arm..."  
  
He didn't look as if this was a happy thing, though.   
  
"D...Draco..." Ginny started, using his first name and seemingly unaware that she was doing so. Malfoy looked at her sharply and flinched away from the raw concern in her eyes. He swallowed hard and pulled his sleeve down. Everyone was staring at him.  
  
"I don't think I need sit with you bleeding wankers anymore!" He growled, turned on his heel and stalked away from them all. Everyone watched him go, his shoulders rigid. He reached another low bookshelf, stopped in front of it and then let his anger out.  
  
He screamed in rage, threw a handful of books to the ground and then kicked the wooden shelf in frustration. He sank down on the floor and drew his knees up to his chin and sat there, seething.  
  
Ginny turned back to Harry with an almost accusatory look in her eyes.   
  
"Why did you have to push him for?"  
  
"I didn't...I just..." But Harry couldn't find the words. He glanced back at Malfoy and licked his lips. He thought he finally understood why Malfoy was the way he was, why he treated everyone like dirt.   
  
He knew no other way.   
  
(end chapter)  
  
**** 


	3. Part Three

The Most Convenient Definitions (3/4)  
  
A/N: Lots of action in this one!  
  
****  
  
Professor Snape walked past the Library doors, ignoring the students inside. There were more pressing matters on his mind, like the delicate potion he had brewing in his dungeons, all the way on the other side of the school. It needed stirring at precisely one o'clock and then the crushed grasshopper legs had to be added to the mix in exactly the right amount or the whole thing would be useless.   
  
Muttering to himself, he swept around the corner on his way to his dungeon and out of sight.   
  
The Library door cracked open. Draco poked his head around the side of it, came fully into the hallway and then peered down the corridor Snape had disappeared into, seeing his robes swoop around another corner. He smiled and then made a forwarding gesture with his hand.  
  
Ginny spilled out into the hallway behind him, looking this way and that. Behind her, Harry poked his head out of the doorway, a dark look on his face that got darker as he followed Ginny into the hallway. Justin followed with Luna Lovegood bringing up the rear, her hair still in a haphazard knot on her head.   
  
They crept down the corridor in the opposite direction, Ginny and Malfoy together, then Justin and Harry, with Luna trailing behind, staring around the corridor like they were on a sightseeing tour.   
  
"How do you know where Snape went?" Ginny asked him, trying to keep up with his long strides. He glanced at her, his hands in the pockets of his robes.  
  
"I don't." He answered shortly.  
  
"Do you know when he'll be back?"  
  
"I don't." He shrugged and glanced at Ginny with a small smile on his lips. "I thought you liked being bad?"  
  
Ginny smiled. "I do."  
  
"Why are we doing this? Breaking into Filch's office...its crazy! Why did we agree to come along?" Justin asked Harry, worrying his hands together, his eyebrows drawn up in concern. Harry shrugged, wondering the same thing.  
  
When Malfoy had proposed they break into Filch's office, only Ginny had said yes. Seeing that Ginny was going to go, Harry wouldn't let himself get left behind. He might just have to save both of them from getting caught. Besides, it sounded like fun.  
  
"Dunno." He muttered in answer, glancing into the open door of the teacher's lounge as they passed it, but Snape was long gone and most of the teachers were in Hogsmeade or off doing non-school things. Filch's office was two floors down and they managed to troop down without seeing anyone, including any of the first or second year's still not allowed to go on Hogsmeade visits.   
  
Malfoy stopped at the last bend to Filch's office, the closed door completely covered in a large scroll that detailed all the items students were forbidden to have. The sounds coming from behind the door told them that Filch was in there, muttering to himself and to Mrs. Norris.   
  
Malfoy turned around and motioned to Harry, who bit down on his lip and then pointed to the stairs. Harry nodded, his eyes meeting Malfoy's. They were suddenly on the same side and it felt a little strange. An unspoken plan passed between them and Malfoy nodded back as Harry darted forward, bringing Luna with him. They went down the left hallway and hid behind a large tapestry that went all the way down to the floor.   
  
Harry counted to sixty, then poked his wand out of the tapestry and whispered, "Wingardium Leviosa!"   
  
The large, shiny suit of armor at the top of the stairs before them lifted of the ground with a metallic groan. It floated over the steps as Harry peered out from behind the tapestry, Luna's breath hot on his neck as she tried to see what the suit of armor was doing. He was almost distracted by her, but he forced his attention back to his other distraction.  
  
He waited a few seconds and then brought his wand downward, the suit of armor crashing to the stone steps with a loud, resounding clang that split the air. Harry flinched and then held completely still, waiting for it...  
  
"PEEVES!" Filch bellowed from one hall over. Luna stirred like she wanted to run, but Harry grabbed her hand and forced her to stay still with him beneath the tapestry. Their breath mingled and Harry found himself staring into her wide, silvery eyes.   
  
She smiled a little and he clenched his wand in his hand so hard he thought he might crack it.   
  
They both held their breath as Filch came running down the hall, his shoes squealing and sliding on the floor as he juddered to a halt. His breathing was shallow and wet sounding as he stared in disbelief at the broken suit of armor lying at the bottom of the stairs.  
  
"PEEVES!" He shouted again and then took off, sprinting over the toppled suit and racing up the stairs, clearly intent on catching Peeves in the act once more. Neither Luna nor Harry felt bad for Peeves getting blamed, not after what he'd done to them at lunch.  
  
"Come on!" Harry said, grabbing Luna's hand and pulling her out from behind the tapestry and back toward Filch's office. They spotted Justin standing guard at the last bend in the corridor. His pale face lightened a little as he saw them round the corner.   
  
"Hurry up Malfoy!" Justin called over his shoulder at the opened door to Filch's office. Harry peered inside anxiously just in time to see Ginny and Malfoy closing the drawer of Filch's cabinet. Harry knew that cabinet held things he'd taken from students in the past. Obviously, Malfoy was getting something of his back.   
  
Harry felt the sudden desire to go look in the drawer himself. There might be something else of his father's in there after all. Surely the Marauder's Map wasn't the only thing Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs made at school? Before he could march in there and look, Ginny and Draco came tearing out the room; Draco stuffed something small into his pocket before Harry could see what it was.  
  
"Thanks for the distraction mate." Malfoy said, clapping Harry on the shoulder. Harry was slightly surprised, but before he could respond they heard a familiar voice bellow through the halls once more.  
  
"PEEVES! I'll have you out of this school for sure!"   
  
"Its Filch! RUN!" Ginny screamed, tearing off down the hallway back toward the Library. Everyone followed her, knowing that, even if Filch thought Peeves had crashed the suit of armor, he still knew they were all supposed to be in detention in the Library and they would be done for.   
  
They rounded a corner and Ginny slipped slightly, her shoes slick on the hardwood floor. Malfoy grabbed her arm and pulled her flush with him as everyone else gave a small gasp. Ginny clutched Malfoy's arm, her stomach fluttering. Draco looked up from her wide brown gaze and went paler than normal. Filch was standing at the end of the corridor, blocking the shortest route back to the Library, his back to them.   
  
Justin, the last in line, immediately turned around, pulling Harry back around the corner with him. Harry, who was still holding Luna's hand, dragged her along as fast as she would go; she looked very excited by what was going on. Draco and Ginny followed and he pulled her around the corner just as Filch turned around and started back down the corridor in their direction.   
  
"Come on! We'll cross through the Charms corridor and back around to the Transfiguration classroom. We can get back to the Library through there." Malfoy said as they ducked into a side corridor. He moved to take the lead, letting go of Ginny, who slid along the wall, trying to stay to the shadows. Filch came pelting by them full-tilt, still screaming for Peeves.   
  
"He could cut us off in the Charms corridor..." Harry protested, but Malfoy glared at him.  
  
"There's no other way!" They stared each other down, then realized they were going to have to stop fighting if they were going to make it back to the Library. Harry relented and gestured for Malfoy to lead the way.   
  
He slid along the wall until the short, dark corridor ended. Harry was both glad and annoyed at the fact that Hogwarts was a great warren of passages and corridors. He also knew that Filch knew the shortcuts through the castle better than anyone, except for perhaps the Weasley twins.   
  
If only he'd thought to bring the Marauder's Map with him this morning... Of course, there was no way he could have known he was going to be running around the school with Ginny, Justin, Luna and Draco, on the lamb from Filch and Snape.  
  
They exited the corridor, all bunched together in a group. They looked around for some sign of Filch, but he was nowhere in sight. Malfoy motioned for them to follow as they all broke out into a run, eyes peeled for any sign of Filch.  
  
They rounded the corner that lead to the Charms corridor and Malfoy immediately turned on his heel and pushed Luna backward.   
  
"Filch!" He said in a strangled voice. Harry turned around, pulling Ginny with them as they tore off in a different direction.   
  
"PEEVES!" Filch's voice rang out, scarily close.   
  
They climbed a staircase and he was suddenly there, climbing out a portrait hole and stumbling into the hallway, his hair standing on end.   
  
They raced off in the opposite direction. Harry grabbed Draco by the collar of his shirt as they rounded another corridor, ran through an empty classroom and down another staircase that let out near the Muggle studies classroom, which was nowhere near the Library.   
  
"Dammit, he's everywhere at once! If he keeps screaming like that, some other teacher is going to come running to find out what's going on and we'll get boxed in! We need to get back to the Library right now!" Harry exclaimed.  
  
"What about Snape? He could be back already!" Justin said, mopping his brow.  
  
Draco scowled deeply and peered around the corner into the wide, bright hallway. "Okay, we cross back the way we came, go down the staircase on the left and that'll take us near Arithmancy. That's only three halls down from the Library...I think."  
  
"Don't think! Know!" Ginny demanded, her face flushed, red hair wildly strewn across her face.  
  
"What do you think Potter?" Malfoy turned to Harry for an opinion, much to his surprise. Harry swallowed hard.   
  
"I don't really know the Arithmancy corridor. But I think if you go left on the stairs, it'll take you near those empty guest rooms the O.W.L testers use when they stay here." He said anxiously, trying to remember what he'd seen on the Marauder's Map. "Its near the Charms corridor...we can still go that way..."  
  
"No, no, no. That's completely wrong, young man." Everyone turned to stare at the painting of a large fat man in a ruff who had spoken up. Harry glared at him.  
  
"Shut up!"   
  
"Which way do we go?" Justin asked, torn between them both, sweat running down his forehead, curly hair standing on end.  
  
"Guest rooms or Arithmancy?" Ginny insisted, looking back and forth between Harry and Draco. Draco's gaze faltered and he bit down on his lip.   
  
Luna squeaked with impatience, glancing down the hallway.  
  
"Come on, the empty guest corridor it is. After all, Potter never gets in trouble..." He said bitterly and then led them back the way they'd come. They all ran down the stairs, took the left split, sides aching, lungs protesting at the lack of air.  
  
"PEEVES!"   
  
Everyone put on a burst of speed and rounded the corridor Harry pointed at. Luna skidded to a stop and wheeled on them.   
  
"Its a dead end!" She said, her long blonde hair completely free of its knot now. The corridor did indeed end in a dead end, the stone wall mocking them as they heard Filch's scratchy scream once more.   
  
"Dammit...sorry." Harry said, glancing at Draco, who slapped the wall with the flat of his palm. "That stupid painting was right."  
  
"Good one Harry! We should have listened to Draco! Filch is going to catch us all for sure now!" Ginny exclaimed, glaring at Harry.   
  
Draco looked at the blank wall and then down the hallway. He bit down on his lip and glanced at Ginny.   
  
"No. Just me. He's just going to catch me." Malfoy said with a definite air of finality.   
  
"What?" Justin asked, stepping up next to him. Malfoy swiftly dug into the pocket of his robes; pulled out the small object he'd stolen from Filch's office and stuffed it into the front of Justin's trousers. Justin gasped and pushed Malfoy away.  
  
"Keep your trousers on, don't take that thing out for anything! Get back to the Library any way you can! Distraction, yeah?" Malfoy said to Harry with a lopsided grin and then he charged through them and ran down the corridor, screaming the lyrics to "Weasley is our King" at the top of his lungs.  
  
Harry watched him go, his mouth open. He wasn't quite sure he believed it. Malfoy had just sacrificed himself for the rest of the group. Ginny gave a small cry and made like she was going to go running after him. Harry grabbed her arm.  
  
"Come on. We've got to get back to the Library." He said forcefully, shaking his head. Ginny swallowed hard, chest heaving. Then she nodded and together, the four of them made their way back to the Library.  
  
****  
  
"WEASLEY IS OUR KING!" Malfoy screeched at the top of his lungs as he jumped down the staircase, tossing his blonde hair from his face. He burst into the Great Hall, where a group of first year Gryffindors jumped and stared at him from their perch at their House table.   
  
His lungs felt like they were going to burst and he was slick with sweat from running. Any moment now...  
  
"There you are!" Filch growled, bursting through the doors behind him. The Gryffindor's eyes widened once again as Filch grabbed him by the shoulder, equally out of breath. "You. You're the one! You...you...broke into my office and crashed the suit of armor, didn't you Malfoy?"  
  
"Ask me no questions, I'll tell you no lies." Malfoy said, shooting Filch another lop-sided grin.  
  
"What in the world is this?" Snape's cold voice said behind Malfoy. He turned his head, tossing his sweat-soaked blonde hair from his eyes and turning to meet the burning gaze of his Head of House. Snape's eyes flashed.  
  
"This little...snake broke into my office and smashed a valuable, centuries old suit of armor! He stole something. I know he did."  
  
"Nothing you didn't steal from me first, Argus." Malfoy said coolly. Filch went red in the face and he turned to Snape for help.   
  
"Professor Snape, let me kick him out..." Filch pleaded, his milky yellowish eyes turning to Snape, who was still glaring holes through Malfoy. "I've already drawn up the paperwork for you..."  
  
"That'll do Argus. I'll take him from here, as he is in my House." Snape said, his lips pursed. Malfoy blinked sweat from his eyes, knowing what was coming.   
  
Filch looked like he'd been denied a great pleasure and he grudgingly limped out of the Great Hall, leaving Snape to grab the back of Malfoy's robes and lead him past the Gryffindor table. The first years leaned forward and starting whispering frantically, but Malfoy ignored them.  
  
On Snape lead him, pushing him forward, his hand clenched in the back of his robes so hard he thought the material might rip. They finally reached the Library and Snape kicked in the doors, pushing Malfoy inside.  
  
His eyes widened as he saw the rest of them sitting there, pinched pale faces on his. Ginny bit her lip, her eyes huge.   
  
"Get your things, Malfoy." Snape growled, towering over them like a black rain cloud. Draco walked to his abandoned bag and grabbed it up in his hands. "Mr. Malfoy has taken it upon himself to go to the Great Hall. I'm sorry to inform you that you will be without his company for the rest of the day."  
  
Justin's eyes got big and he glanced at his crotch, then over at Malfoy, who ignored him.  
  
"How terribly sad." Malfoy said, flopping down in his seat wearily.   
  
"Everything is a rebellion to you, Draco!" Snape snapped, glaring down at him. "Bewitching the school brooms to throw off riders was really smart, wasn't it? It landed you in here, didn't it? What if we'd needed them to get the students out of here in case of an attack?"  
  
Malfoy didn't say anything, his chin lifted defiantly.   
  
"Not that you'd care. As long as your selfish family pride remains in tact, nothing bothers you. Let me put it another way, Malfoy. What if your home, your mother and father were attacked? What would you do?"  
  
"Shut up."  
  
"Look at you...a pathetic, scared little future Death Eater. Following in your father's footsteps because you think you have to."  
  
"I don't have to do anything!" Malfoy burst out, his eyes strangely bright. "Don't try to tell me what to do, Severus. I can make my own choices! You're not my father!"   
  
Snape had a shrewd look on his face. "Where is it? That thing you stole from Filch's office…what is it? Where is it?"  
  
Malfoy laughed and slung his arm on the back of his chair. "In Finch-Fletchley's knickers."   
  
Justin's eyes widened. Snape didn't even bother to look at him. Harry laughed slightly despite himself, and Snape rounded on him.  
  
"You think that's funny, do you Potter?" Snape growled and then looked back at Malfoy. "You want to see something fairly amusing, visit Draco Malfoy in Azkaban in five years. That's exactly where his life heading. Look at him! He's as bad as his father!" Malfoy's strangely bright eyes got brighter and Snape laughed cruelly. "Going to cry, Malfoy?"  
  
He crossed the room and laid a hand up on Malfoy's shoulder. He shrugged it off and stood up. "Don't you touch me." Snape glared at him, but didn't admonish him for cursing. Malfoy pushed past Snape and hit Harry on the arm.  
  
"Arithmancy." He said in an 'I told you so' manner. Harry barely stopped himself from smiling.  
  
"Come on." Snape said and Malfoy walked out the Library doors, pushing things off Madam Pince's counter as he passed. Snape swept out the doors, leaving the four of them alone to stare at each other.   
  
Justin glanced worriedly at his crotch and gulped.  
  
****  
  
Snape swung the heavy door of the broom closet open, pushed Draco inside and slammed the door behind him. Draco landed hard against a large stack of boxes, his heart thumping hard in his chest. He turned around indignantly, flustered and angry.   
  
Snape pulled out his wand and pointed it straight at Draco's chest. Draco stilled the insult he'd been ready to fling at Snape and stared back, trembling slightly.  
  
"Accio Wand!" Snape said and Draco's wand wriggled its way out of his robes and flew into Snape's hand. Draco glared back, remembering his lie earlier. He decided not to care. "Sit down." Snape's voice was cold and full of barely contained anger. Draco hesitated and then sank down on the shortest tower of boxes, the stack tottering beneath his weight. He made his face go blank, not willing to give Snape the satisfaction of seeing him upset.   
  
"That's the last time you make me look like a fool in front of the other students, Malfoy."  
  
Malfoy stared at the end of Snape's wand, not daring to lift his gaze to meet the fiery glare he could feel burning holes in his skin.   
  
"You disgust me." Snape continued in his unctuous voice, "My patience with you has run thin. Now...what did you steal from Filch?"  
  
"Nothing he didn't steal from me, sir."  
  
"Did your father send you something?" Snape demanded all in one breath, chest puffing out. Draco met his burning gaze and flinched.  
  
"If he did, I wouldn't tell you. That's between me and the rest of the Death Eaters." He spat bitterly, his stomach churning once again.   
  
"Is that what you think you are, boy? Do you think you're a Death Eater now?" Snape got in his face, teeth grinding.   
  
Draco didn't answer.  
  
"Have already joined their ranks, you foolish boy? Already have the Dark Mark on your arm? Are you proud of it, boy?"  
  
Draco swallowed hard and glanced at his forearm, feeling tears in his eyes that he refused to spill.  
  
"You're nothing but a coward, Malfoy. A stupid coward and that's all you'll ever be. I can see now that you don't care for what's right. Not when you constantly break my rules." Draco knew that there was only one thing Snape hated as much as a Death Eater and it was someone who broke rules. "If you weren't a student..."  
  
"You'd what?" Draco snapped. Snape jabbed his wand toward him. "Are you threatening me?"  
  
"What? Going to tell your father? He can't help you now. You can't hide behind him or your family name any longer. You're just stupid, cowardly Draco Malfoy and nothing else." Snape sneered down at him. "You'll never be anything. I can see that now."  
  
"Going to use that thing anytime soon or will I have to listen to your whining all day?" Draco drawled, unable to stop himself. He hated the look in Snape's eyes. His stomach clenched as Snape laughed cruelly once more.   
  
"Years from now, when you're long gone from this institution, you and I will meet Malfoy. And then...then we'll know who is better. I'll tear you limb from limb..." Draco paled at the murderous look in his eyes. Snape smiled. "Frightened, Malfoy? What? Would you like to try it now? Fine..."  
  
"What?"   
  
"Try it. Hex me, curse me...I dare you. I give you my permission." Draco's eyes widened. Snape saw his terror and smiled again, faking a flick of his wand. Draco flinched away from him. "That's what I thought. I do hope that when you take up your dear father's noble work, you don't hesitate or the Dark Lord is going to be most unpleased."  
  
Snape looked like this would have pleased him. He stared down at him for a few more moments, lifted his lip in disgust and then swept out of the broom closet. Draco heard him on the other side and recognized the locking spell he placed on the door.   
  
"Fuck." Draco muttered under his breath and hit his head against the stack of boxes at his back. The teetering tower vibrated with the hit and then tumbled over before he could stop it. One of the boxes tipped open and spilled several bottles all over the floor.  
  
Draco sighed and then looked at the bottles that had fallen out. He smiled.  
  
After several applications of Filch's All-Purpose Charm Dissolver on the spell-locked door, it hitched open. Draco took a deep breath and cracked it open slightly, peering into the hallway beyond, where the door of the teacher's lounge was clearly visible.   
  
Snape came out of it a moment later and walked swiftly down the hall. Draco furrowed his brow and crawled out of the closet, casting his eyes about.   
  
He stood up; sliding along the wall, ready to dive behind a statue if Snape should come sweeping his way again.   
  
"What are you doing?"  
  
Draco jumped and wheeled around, staring Peeves straight in his smiling face, his orange bowtie standing out against his skin. He was hovering in the air a few feet away from the floor. He looked very interested in what Draco was doing.   
  
"Go away Peeves!" Draco hissed, inching his way toward the Library doors.  
  
"The Fat Friar told me a no-no!" Peeves said, flipping upside down and stretching his features gruesomely.  
  
"And what's that?" He asked, against his better judgment. The best thing to do was be nice to the poltergeist when he was anywhere near you.  
  
"That you tried to get ME in TROUBLE!" His voice rose, almost indignant. He flipped in the air again and swooped down, blocking Draco's path to the Library. Draco flinched at the loudness in his voice and glanced at the bathroom door.  
  
"I didn't..."  
  
"DID SO!"   
  
"Okay...maybe I did...but you like trouble!"   
  
Peeves's mouth opened slightly and then he brightened. "Yes...I do, indeedy weedy, ferrety face!"   
  
"G'way!" Draco snapped in annoyance.  
  
"Naughty waughty student. Should be in detention, you should!" He said, as if he'd just realized it.   
  
"I know--"  
  
"Let me help you!" Draco's eyes widened; he reached for his wand to ward Peeves off, but by the time he remembered that Snape had taken it, Peeves had grabbed him by the seat of his robes and his collar and pulled him down the hallway willy-nilly. "Out with the good, in with the bad!"   
  
"NO!! SHIIIIIITTT!" Draco screamed as Peeves threw him through the Library doors. He tumbled end over end and landed in a sprawl against Madam Pince's counter, his head clunking on the wooden front.   
  
"Oh my God!" Ginny cried as she saw whom it was. "Peeves!"  
  
But Peeves, who had peaked through the doors to see his handiwork, only blew a loud raspberry and swooped away down the corridor and out of sight.   
  
Draco took a deep breath and climbed to his feet. Everyone was staring at him; Luna had her mouth open wide, Harry looked equally shocked, Ginny was completely terrified and Justin looked ready to faint. He took to his feet and smiled at them.  
  
"Forgot my quill." He said, walking over to where he'd been sitting earlier picking up his abandoned quill.  
  
"What the hell is going on in here?" Snape's voice suddenly rang from out in the hall. Draco dived for cover beneath Harry and Ginny's table, which was the only table with a back. He rolled beneath it and tucked his legs up just in time to hear the door swing open. "What was that ruckus?"  
  
Everyone glanced at each other.   
  
"What ruckus?" Harry asked innocently, turning his attention back on Snape's disgruntled face.  
  
"I was in the hallway and I heard a ruckus!"   
  
"Could you describe the ruckus, sir?" Harry suggested as earnestly as he could make himself. He felt Draco stir beneath the table as Snape pointed an angry finger at him.  
  
"Watch it, Potter!" Snape snarled.   
  
Beneath the table, Draco shifted position again, his face near Ginny's legs. He sat up a little and bashed his head against the bottom of the table. Above the table, Harry and Ginny's eyes widened and they both banged on the table with their fists to mask it.   
  
"What is that? What are you doing?" Snape demanded.  
  
Draco winced and rubbed his head, tilting it sideways. As he did so, he lowered himself in front of Ginny and his eyes widened. She was sitting in front of him, her long legs crossed over each other. He smiled and reached out a hand to touch her skin.  
  
"What noise?" Harry continued, completely unaware of what was going on beneath the table.   
  
"There really wasn't a noise, sir...we swear..." Ginny started to say and then choked it off as Draco touched her leg and slipped his hand up her skirt.   
  
Ginny squealed as he moved between her legs. She squeezed her thighs together on his hand as hard as she could and Draco gave a loud grunt. Hearing the noise, everyone started coughing even louder, hacking into their fists. Draco wrenched his head out from between her thighs and she took a deep breath.  
  
"Was that the noise you were talking about? It's very dusty in here, you know." She said, flustered, cheeks going pink. She coughed a little and Snape glared at her.  
  
"No, Miss Weasley, that was not the noise I heard." He pulled himself up to full height and stared down his hooked nose at them. "I may not have caught you this time, Potter, but you can surely bet I will the next time."  
  
Harry scowled. He hadn't done anything! Not that had ever mattered to Snape.   
  
Luna suddenly laughed and Snape turned his attention on her. "The same goes for you Lovegood."  
  
And with that, he turned on his heel and marched toward the door. Harry barely contained his laughter as he swooped out of the room like the large bird of prey that he was, the doors swinging shut behind him.   
  
Everyone burst out laughing nervously. They couldn't believe they'd gotten away with it!   
  
"Get out!" Ginny screeched, grabbing Draco by the collar and hauling him out from under the desk. She smacked him several times as he gained his feet.  
  
He smiled at her in a lewd way and blinked calmly. "It was an accident."   
  
"You're a wanker!"   
  
"You can hex me later, if you like. Right now I need something of yours." Draco said calmly, reaching forward and pulling her wand out of her robes. She looked at him questioningly, but he turned around and marched over to Justin, who was still laughing about Snape.  
  
"Hey, can I have my hard-won spoils of war?" Draco asked Justin, who jumped and immediately fished into his robes and into his pants. He pulled out the cloth-wrapped parcel and handed it to Draco, who took it with two fingers, his nose wrinkled.  
  
He glanced at the others and then took off across the library, leaving them all behind. Ginny bit her lip and glanced at Harry. They were both curious as to what was in the package and why he'd wanted it so bad, but Harry had a feeling Draco didn't want anyone to know about it.  
  
Ginny obviously didn't care. She leapt out of her seat and followed Malfoy into the dark confines of the Library. Harry glanced at Justin and saw Luna sitting there, her wand behind her ear. She glanced at him imploringly, but he ignored her and looked down at the floor.  
  
Justin looked around, glanced at Harry and then at the back of the Library. He took a deep sigh and leapt to his feet to follow Ginny and Draco. Harry cursed under his breath and watched him go.   
  
He smacked his hand on the desk and tried to tell himself that he didn't care what Malfoy was doing. That lasted all of two seconds though as he leapt to his feet and took off, streaking past Luna, who watched him go with interest.   
  
Malfoy was standing at one of the low bookshelves, Ginny and Justin at both elbows. Harry circled the shelf to stand in front of Draco, who glanced at him and then down at the parcel he laid out before him. He lifted Ginny's wand and the cloth fell away from it.  
  
Inside was a small, coiled snake made of silver. Everyone glanced at each other as Malfoy fixed his gray eyes on its gleaming form. His free hand lifted up and he swallowed hard, fingers trembling slightly.   
  
His index finger slid along its curving, scaled back and the snake gave a shudder. Ginny jumped slightly as it uncoiled, moving like liquid silver as it rose to the level of Draco's face. It had cold, emerald eyes and a silvery tongue flicked out of its mouth, revealing needle sharp teeth.   
  
Justin gave a funny squeak.  
  
"That was in my trousers!" He said in a loud, terrified voice.   
  
"Shhh Finch-Fletchely...Potter...say something to it." Draco said, not taking his eyes off of the animated metal serpent.  
  
"What?" Harry exclaimed, pulling himself out of his fascinated staring. He looked at Malfoy, but Malfoy wouldn't look back.   
  
"Say something in Parseltongue." He insisted and Harry swallowed, not sure if he should trust him or not. Malfoy wasn't exactly trustworthy, after all. At least...he thought he wasn't...his conception of Draco had been sort of twisted throughout the day. But here, in the face of something that was clearly an artifact of Dark Magic, he was thrown back into seeing Malfoy as the bad guy.  
  
"No...I'm not going to..." He started to say, but then he heard his voice and it came out in a whispering hiss. Everyone gasped, especially Justin, who hadn't been overly fond of snakes ever since his second year and the incident at the Dueling Club. This was all far too familiar to him now and he backed up a few paces.  
  
The silver snake heard Harry's voice and immediately swiveled around, rising to its full height. It hissed loudly, a scratchy metal sound. Harry's eyes widened and he went to move away.  
  
The snake struck fast, darting out toward Harry's face. Harry flinched away just as Draco screamed "Obliviate!"  
  
The snake curled up in mid-air, falling to the floor at Harry's feet. It turned to silver ash on the floor, leaving them all alone and breathless. Silence pervaded the room for a few moments before Draco gave a small sigh and sagged against the bookshelf.  
  
He lowered his head, Ginny's wand dropping out his fingers and clattering across the top of the shelf. Everyone jumped at the sound. Harry glared at Draco, wondering what the hell had just happened. He was very sure that snake had tried to attack him. But Draco had stopped it...  
  
"What the hell was that?"  
  
Draco looked up through his hair at Harry and let out a small breath. "A little gift from my father. He told me to slip it into Dumbledore's office. The snake would do the rest."   
  
"That thing...it was going to kill Dumbledore?" Harry demanded, fury raging through him. "You were going to...you bastard!" He clenched his fists, ready to pound Malfoy's arrogant, pointed face into the ground.  
  
"Well I didn't do it! Did I? I destroyed it!" Draco exploded, his body trembling as he met Harry's burning gaze.  
  
"Why?"   
  
"Because...I...its not right! I don't...I'm not my father!" Draco forced out through his gritted teeth, frazzled in a way that none of them had ever seen. Something about Draco was cracking from within and they could all see it shining through. "They all think I'm a Death Eater. They don't care that I don't want to...I just...I know it's not right! I'm not him!"  
  
Harry blinked as Malfoy swiped his fingers across his eyes. Ginny hesitated for a moment and then touched his shoulder. Malfoy shrugged her off and looked back up at Harry.  
  
"Malfoy..."  
  
"I'm not going to do it. I'll destroy anything that asshole sends me. He's not my father. I'm not a Death Eater. He's the one who shamed the name of our family, not me." He said firmly. "I would have destroyed it when I first got it, but Filch cornered me and took it. He didn't know what it was...but he didn't trust me. Not that I blame him..." He cut off with a wry smile.   
  
"Draco, are you okay?" Ginny asked again and he touched her face gently.   
  
"I'm fine, Weasley. Just something I had to do." He sighed heavily and looked back at Harry. "Don't believe me if you want, Potter. I just wanted to make it very clear to you that I'm...I'm not a Death Eater. I don't support You-Know-Who."  
  
Harry could see the sincerity in his eyes and he let the fury wash off his face. "I believe you. Though I can't pretend not to be shocked. I always thought you were this horrible person..."  
  
Draco made a face. "Don't get all weepy on me! I still dislike Mudbloods, you know. And you, to a degree. No offense." He added quickly, glaring at Harry for a split second before both boys slowly cracked smiles.   
  
They'd finally come to an understanding.  
  
****  
  
A half an hour later they'd all drifted apart. Draco wandered off across the Library on his own, obviously wanting to be alone after what happened earlier. Ginny had hesitated for a moment and then slipped off quietly to follow him. Harry watched her go and decided he didn't much care what she did.   
  
He wasn't her brother or her keeper.   
  
Harry and Justin were now sitting next to each other on the floor, talking about nothing in particular. Harry realized he didn't know the Hufflepuff very well and decided to remedy that fact by asking him questions about himself.   
  
He glanced at Luna, hovering a few feet away, seemingly in her own world yet again. He looked back at Justin and tried to think of something to ask him.  
  
"What about...ummm...what are you doing after we leave Hogwarts? Ministry...or?" He trailed off as Justin sat up and shook his head.   
  
"Guess..." Justin said, crossing his arms behind his head.  
  
Luna suddenly spoke up, pushing off from the shelf she'd been leaning against and walking forward. "He's going into the Department of Muggle Relations."  
  
Justin blinked at her. "How do you know that?"  
  
"I just do."  
  
"Really?" Harry said, shaking his head and staring at her. "Well then...tell me something else."  
  
"The Sorting Hat considered putting him in Ravenclaw, but decided on Hufflepuff at the last second. He hates the smell of Snape's dungeon. He thinks Hannah Abbott is the prettiest girl in school, but she's dating his best friend, Ernie MacMillan. He got seven O.W.L's and wanted more. He dislikes wearing the school robes because he thinks they look like dresses and he hates his curly hair."  
  
Justin's eyes widened. "How in the bloody hell do you know that, Luna? Are you...are you a Seer like Professor Trelawney?"  
  
Luna laughed long and hard at that one. Harry exchanged glances with Justin, just a little worried about her. Tears running down her cheeks, she gasped out, "No!"  
  
"Then how do you know all that?" Justin asked, bewildered.  
  
"I stole your journal." She said simply, pulling it out of her robes. Justin's mouth flew open and he glanced at his long abandoned seat at the table, seeing it was missing from where he'd left it.   
  
"Give it here!"   
  
"No."   
  
"Give it!" Justin demanded and she handed it over, unblinking eyes calmly studying him. Justin flipped through it, red with embarrassment. "Lovely. Not only are you a loon, but you're a right thief!"  
  
"I'm not a thief. I'm an investigative reporter. We do anything get our story." Luna said defiantly as Justin glared at her. "Besides...there's nothing interesting in there anyway...except that Muggle photograph."  
  
Justin went purple and then green. "You saw that?"  
  
"Yes." Luna smiled slightly.   
  
"What? Who is it of?" Harry asked curiously, sitting up and trying to get a good look at Justin's journal.   
  
"Nobody!" "A naked Muggle woman!" Justin and Luna announced together. Harry's mouth flew open.   
  
"Really? You...you have one of those?"  
  
"Y-yes. But I..." Justin stammered and Harry smiled lopsidedly.   
  
"Let's see it." Harry found himself saying. He'd never seen a naked woman before and the curiousity was eating him alive. Justin hesitated for a moment and then relented, figuring there was no point in saying no.  
  
He pulled it out from the journal and handed it over to Harry, who blinked and felt his ears go red. The woman was completely nude and lying in a lewd pose. The image was seared into Harry's mind immediately.   
  
Harry swallowed hard and couldn't stop himself from glancing up at Luna. He felt very warm all of a sudden.  
  
****  
  
Across the Library, Ginny was sitting cross-legged in a squashy, comfortable chair watching Draco go through her purse. She watched as he pulled her makeup out of her bag and looked in disgust at all the cosmetics she used.   
  
"If you're going to go through my things, I should be able to go through your stuff." Ginny pointed out, leaning her head on her hands.  
  
Without looking up from his inspection of her tube of Ever Shine Lip Gloss, he dug his free hand into his pocket and pulled out an elegant leather wallet and tossed it at her. She caught it in her fist and promptly opened it to reveal a plethora of moving, wizard photographs.  
  
She recognized a few of the girls and scowled as Pansy Parkinson's pug face stared back at her from the photo, trying to primp herself for Draco. Ginny glanced at Draco.  
  
"Are they all your girlfriends?"  
  
"Some of them are, yes." He said, sniffing a bottle of her perfume with interest.   
  
"What about the rest of them?" She asked, looking at one girl after the other as they smiled, tossing their hair and making kissy faces at her.   
  
"Some I consider my girlfriends and the others I just consider."   
  
"Consider?"  
  
"Whether or not they're good enough to be with me." He answered, much to her exasperation. He was such an arrogant little prig, despite his actions earlier.   
  
"Don't you believe in one boy and one girl in a relationship?" She asked, biting on her lip and flipping his wallet closed.  
  
"Do you?" Draco countered, arching an eyebrow in her direction.  
  
"Of course. That's the way it should be."  
  
"Not for me. Though I might have known you'd feel that way. You were dating Michael Corner last year, weren't you? And Dean Thomas this year, right?" Draco said, looking into her eyes. "Why did you break up? You put a Bat-Bogey Hex on him too?"  
  
Ginny couldn't help but smile despite the barb. She remembered well having to hex him last year in Umbridge's office.   
  
"Well, Dean didn't give me sass or hold my friends hostage." She retorted. "We just...drifted. No big deal."  
  
"Right." Draco said darkly. "Its always a big deal to girls when you break up with them."  
  
"Not that you'd care..." Ginny said with a dry chuckle.   
  
"You'd be surprised." Draco said again and then caught himself. He glanced down at her purse, attempting to change the subject. "Why do you carry so much stuff with you?"  
  
"Why have you got so many girlfriends?" Ginny countered, not letting him drop it. He gave a little growl at her.  
  
"I asked you first, Weasley."  
  
Ginny shrugged. "I never throw anything away, I suppose."  
  
"Same here." Draco shot back smartly, gracing her with another lopsided grin. Ginny rolled her eyes and blushed slightly. They both fell silent again and she watched him go through her things, acting like he owned them. She smiled despite herself.  
  
****  
  
Harry flipped through Justin's journal, reading passages as Justin looked on. The naked woman had been hidden back in the pages, much to both Harry and Justin's relief.   
  
"You got seven O.W.L's? That's pretty good."  
  
"Not really. Hermione Granger got more, from what I hear." Justin said, with only a trace of bitterness.   
  
"She did. But...Hermione's almost a freak of nature. She lives for studying. Its almost frightening sometimes." Harry said wisely, nodding his head.  
  
"What about you? How many did you get?"  
  
Harry shrugged. "Enough. I got into all the classes I needed to in order to be an Auror and that's all that matters to me. I don't put much stock in exams. I enjoy practical situations."  
  
"You'd have to...all the things you've done." Justin snorted. Harry shrugged again.   
  
Luna suddenly spoke up, wand falling from behind her ear and rolling across the floor to Harry's feet. "Would you like to see what's in my satchel?"  
  
Harry and Justin exchanged glances again. "No!" They said at the same time.   
  
Luna furrowed her brow, then flipped her satchel off and dumped it out on the couch. Butterbeer caps, old, rumpled copies of The Quibbler, books, quills, bottles of dried-up ink, a pair of knickers, socks with holes in them, a clipping of the article that reran in The Daily Prophet with Harry's photograph smiling up at them, makeup, Spellotape, a hairbrush, a broken wristwatch, and a picture of what looked like her parents all spilled out onto the floor beside Justin.  
  
Harry's eyes widened. "What is all that?"  
  
"Do you always carry that much stuff around?"   
  
"Yes. I have to or it'll get stolen." She said rather glumly and Harry frowned. Justin lifted an eyebrow.   
  
"Who would steal this rubbish?"   
  
"Its not rubbish." She insisted, looking hurt. "If it was rubbish, no one would steal it!"  
  
Justin looked confused, not that Harry blamed him. "You're a little...off, aren't you?" He hazarded.  
  
Luna sat up straight and glared at Justin. "No I'm not. I'm perfectly normal."  
  
"Then why are you always walking around with your head in the clouds?" Justin insisted, sitting up straight. Harry flinched. "Why don't you have any friends?"  
  
"Because...no one understands me." She said in a slow, cautious voice.   
  
Justin looked her over and then leaned toward Harry.   
  
"Harry, you want to help me out here? Luna says she has no friends because no one understands her..." He whispered as Harry bit down on his lip. He looked Luna over, quietly.   
  
"Everybody is misunderstood though. Its part of being a teenager." Harry said slowly.  
  
Luna's wide, misty gaze darkened and she started stuffing her things back into her bag. "Nevermind." She said vaguely, obviously upset that she'd said anything.  
  
"What's the problem?" Harry asked, sitting up. Luna turned her gaze to his and took a deep breath.  
  
"There is no problem. Forget I said anything." She said defensively. Harry reached for her wrist, stopping her as she got up.  
  
"No! You say people don't understand you...but do you even try to make them?" Harry demanded, but Luna tore her wrist out of his hand.   
  
"Go away!" She said and then tore off across the Library, hair flying out behind her.   
  
"Forget it, mate. She's in a world of her own, trust me." Justin said, throwing up his hands. Harry shot him a dirty look, picked up her abandoned wand and took off after her. He rounded a tall bookshelf and found her standing against the wall, her head in her hands.   
  
Harry was slightly taken aback. He'd never seen Luna upset before. Even when they'd been fighting for their lives in the Ministry, she'd kept her cool, almost dreamy disposition in check. Now she looked like she was walking on a wire, her hands shaking.   
  
"Hi...do you want to talk?" He asked gently. She looked up, wide protuberant eyes filled with unshed tears. Harry's heart gave a funny flip.  
  
"No." She said warily, trying to regain her composure.   
  
"Why not?"  
  
"What do you care?" She challenged him, crossing her arms over her chest.  
  
"Because I do...I upset you. I'm sorry."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"What do you mean?" Harry asked, confused. She blinked to clear the tears from her eyes and took a deep breath.  
  
"I mean...why do you care that you upset me? No one ever cares when they upset me, or make fun of me or steal my things. No one cares."   
  
"Is that why you're upset?" Harry asked lightly. Luna flinched and looked down at the floor.   
  
"No...I..."  
  
"You can tell me, Luna. I'll understand." He said in a weighted voice.   
  
"How could you? Everyone sees you. Everyone likes you! You're famous!" Luna said, as close to anger as he'd ever seen her.  
  
"You think I want all that? I hate it! I wish everyone would forget I ever existed most of the time!" Harry retorted just as angrily. "If you're trying to make out that my life is greater than yours..."   
  
"At least you have friends! I don't!" Luna cried, a tear spilling down her pale cheek. "Everyone ignores me...even my father."  
  
She looked absolutely lost and Harry's heart went out to her.   
  
"He does? But...last year, I kind of thought that you and he were close. Didn't you, um...hunt Crumple Horned Snorkacks this summer?" Harry hazarded, feeling immensely horrible that he'd brought it up.  
  
"No. He had to work. He's always working. I...sometimes I read The Quibbler just to feel close to him...it's the only thing we have in common. I really don't think he knew what to do with me after my mother died, you know? If I disappeared, he wouldn't notice." Luna said quietly, her eyes far away.  
  
"That's not true. He'd notice. Trust me." Harry said firmly. "And believe me, people notice you. I notice you."  
  
Luna's gaze snapped back up to Harry's at this and she wiped at her eyes. "Yeah?"  
  
"Yeah." He said and smiled gently, and then leaned against the wall next to her, his shoulder squashed against the bookcase. "Yeah...I notice you. And I...sort of understand you. Sometimes."   
  
Luna bowed her head, blushing slightly. They both stood there in silence for a good long while, wondering how a day that had started off so ominously had suddenly changed so much and for the better.   
  
(end chapter)  
  
**** 


	4. Part Four

The Most Convenient Definitions (4/4)  
  
A/N: Last chapter! Thanks reviewers!  
  
****  
  
Snape had yet to appear again and none of them seemed to care. Everyone drifted back toward each other, the boredom of waiting for the day long gone. They'd discovered something strange, though none of them knew quite what that something was. Now they were all sitting in a circle, trying to pass the time by asking each other questions.  
  
Ginny, who was sitting across from Draco, her back to the legs of a chair, thought long and hard, her pink lips twisted in thought. She turned to Harry and a question sprang to her mind.  
  
"What would you do for a million Galleons?" She asked him. He shrugged.  
  
"As little as I had to, I guess."  
  
"That's boring! It has to be something really outrageous!" She insisted as he blew out a breath.  
  
"Well...you suggest something and I'll tell you if I would or not."   
  
"Okay...would you...would you ever play Quidditch naked?" She reiterated with an impish grin. Everyone laughed and looked over at Harry, who looked stricken.  
  
"Er...I don't know." He stammered. "Would I have to be in front of everyone?"   
  
"Of course."  
  
"Against Slytherin or Ravenclaw?"  
  
"Slytherin, of course." Draco spoke up with an evil grin. "We couldn't resist making fun of that."  
  
Harry ignored him. "Fall, winter or spring?"   
  
"Winter." Ginny decided, tossing her hair over her shoulder.  
  
Harry wrinkled his nose and thought for a moment. "Ummm..."  
  
"Come on, don't chicken out!" Justin said, lying on his side, his head propped up on his hand. Harry glanced at him and then took a deep breath. There was no way he was going to back out if Justin thought he was a chicken.  
  
"Fine then. Yeah. I'd do it."  
  
"I'd do that too." Luna spoke up. Everyone looked over at her in surprise, but she calmly went on, "I'd do anything involving my body. I don't mind being naked. I don't need a million Galleons either."  
  
"You're lying!" Ginny scoffed, mouth flying open. Harry's eyes were fit to bulge out of their sockets.  
  
"No I'm not." Luna said seriously. "Except...I probably wouldn't play Quidditch. I'm horrible on a broom, you know."   
  
"Yeah and think of all the splinters..." Malfoy laughed. Luna turned her attention on him and stared in her solemn, disquieting way. He stopped laughing and looked away, slightly creeped out.  
  
"Nonsense!" Ginny declared waspishly.   
  
Luna smiled and said in a singsong voice, "A little nonsense now and then is cherished by the wisest men!"  
  
"Are you telling me that you'd run around naked in front of everyone? Do you do that a lot?" Ginny asked, completely disturbed.  
  
"Not in the dorms...I don't think my fellow bedmates would enjoy it very much. But when I have sex--"  
  
"What? You...you have…? With WHO?" Ginny demanded. Harry was also very interested and he stared at Luna, his mouth hanging open so wide that a niffler could have crawled inside and taken his fillings.  
  
"A friend of my fathers." Luna said matter-of-factly. Ginny looked extremely ill.  
  
"A friend of your FATHERS? That's so sick! Does your dad know?"  
  
"I don't think he'd care." Luna blinked and glanced at Harry, whose mouth was still open.  
  
"My father would!"   
  
"Well, what about you? Have you ever had sex?" Luna asked Ginny, once again serious. Ginny took a deep breath and looked away.  
  
"I don't know any of my father's friends well enough." She caught herself and turned crimson. "Not that I would if I did..."  
  
"How about someone from Hogwarts? Any of your boyfriends? Have you ever had sex with one of them?" Luna insisted and Ginny's cheeks flushed. She glanced at Harry, but Harry was still staring at Luna.  
  
"Haven't we already covered this?" Ginny asked, turning her attention on Draco, who was leaning toward her with interest.  
  
"You never answered my question, Weasley."  
  
Ginny lifted a hand to ward them all off and her eyes widened. "I'm not discussing this with any of you. This is my private life."  
  
"Why are you so scared? We won't tell anyone, we swear." Luna said, but Draco opened his mouth to say different. Harry suddenly shook himself out his shocked silence and turned to Ginny.  
  
"Well...Dean Thomas told me...that um..."  
  
Ginny's eyes flashed. "That WHAT? What did he say? I'll KILL him!"  
  
"Only that...that you and he...well..."  
  
"Did you shag him?" Draco asked, partly in awe and partly indignant. Ginny looked at him and scowled.  
  
"That's none of your business!" She snapped and turned back to Harry. "What did Dean say?"  
  
"He said you...you were a tease."  
  
"I am NOT!"  
  
"So you have done it, eh?" Justin spoke up and she glared at him.  
  
"I...no, you're putting words into my mouth. I'm not...I wouldn't use anyone like that..." She stammered. Luna smiled vaguely.  
  
"So have you done it?" Draco insisted. Harry glanced at him.  
  
"Yeah. Answer the question. Either you have or you haven't. I won't tell Ron!"  
  
"Its a tiny question, Ginny! I told you about myself earlier! Its no big deal!" Justin piped in.  
  
Ginny listened to the boys yelling at her for a few more seconds, becoming increasingly more and more flustered. Her head throbbed until finally she couldn't take it anymore.  
  
"NO! I've never done it!" She shouted, silencing everyone. Draco smiled faintly in triumph. Luna sighed and looked up from behind the curtain of her dirty blonde hair.  
  
"I've never done it either." She said, offering up this new piece of information. Ginny turned her attention on her, eyes blazing.   
  
"WHAT? You...you just..."  
  
"I'm an investigative reporter. We use any means necessary to get our story." Luna said matter-of-factly, blinking at Ginny calmly.  
  
"You COW!" Ginny exploded.  
  
"I would do it though. If you love someone...its okay." Luna said, glancing sidelong at Harry. Harry lowered his head, suddenly very intent on studying his fingernails.  
  
"You are so weird, Luna! You're always going on and on about all this rubbish that no one understands and then you...you do things like this to people! Its...its..." Ginny stammered out in her anger, not able to articulate her fury.  
  
Harry's head snapped up. "You're just angry because she got you to admit something you didn't want to! Don't take your embarrassment and your issues out on her!"  
  
Ginny glowered at him and then rolled her eyes. "Fine. But it doesn't make up for HER issues."  
  
"What issues? We've all got issues...some of us are just better at hiding them." Harry said, clenching his fists together.  
  
"Right. What issues do you have, Harry?" Ginny said, snorting derisively.  
  
Harry looked around, his stomach suddenly clenched. Luna looked up again. "He has a hero complex and he hates it."  
  
Harry glanced at her and their eyes connected. He nodded slowly. "She's right. Do you...do you guys know what I did to get detention?"  
  
Everyone stared, silence descending on them again. Harry went on.  
  
"Last Friday I...we...the Gryffindor Quidditch team was practicing and I wasn't doing too well. I kept messing up on the Waterfall Flip and thinking about Snape and how he'd given me a failing grade on my Anti-Gravity potion that day. Well, after practice, I was walking back to the school by myself and...and this Hufflepuff kid...I don't know his name...he came running after me. He started talking...saying all these things like, his family was afraid I'd attack him. And how he wasn't supposed to talk to me and how he still thought I was brave and nice and about how he thought I'd end up defeating Voldemort..." He trailed off as everyone flinched at the sound of the name.  
  
"What did you do, Harry?" Ginny asked quietly, seeing the strain on Harry's face.  
  
"He just kept going on and on, like I was some sort of...hero or something. Like I could save him. And I kept thinking about everything that's going on, the war, Voldemort...Sirius...especially Sirius. I mean...I've been keeping in line this year. I haven't broken many rules...I've been studying to be an Auror so hard. And I thought about what Sirius told me last year and this thing I saw in Snape's Pensieve. I always got the feeling that Sirius wanted me to cut loose, break the rules a lot. He thought it was fun. He wanted me to be like my dad, you know? Except my dad was...he was a big prat at my age. He was a bully, you know?"  
  
"What does that have to do with the kid?" Justin insisted, breaking through the fog in Harry's mind.  
  
"He was just talking...going on...making me out to be this big hero when I'm not. I don't want to be--I have to be! I have to save everyone, you know. It's my destiny. I kept thinking about my father and Sirius and then...then I just did it. Anything to make him shut up, you know? Just to stop him from putting all that weight on my shoulders...I didn't want it. I'm nothing special. I know I'm not! He was just so..." Harry lowered his head. Luna touched his shoulder.  
  
"Tell us what you did, Harry." She said in a whisper so that the others could barely hear her.  
  
"I pulled out my wand. I didn't even know I was doing it. I cursed him. It was this...this spell I'd been having trouble with, but it was the first one I could think of and I just did it to him. It worked for the first time and the kid just...fell. He just fell like Cedric did."  
  
"You DIDN'T?" Ginny exclaimed, eyes wide with horror. "Not...not..."  
  
"No, it wasn't the killing curse, Gin. I can't...I'm not allowed to tell you what it did. Its part of my training." Harry said heavily, tears in his eyes.  
  
"But...is he okay?"  
  
"He's still in the infirmary with Madam Pomfrey...but he...he should be getting out of there soon. There wasn't any lasting damage." He said, looking up. "The thing is...I only got a detention. ONE detention for what I did to that poor kid. I would be kicked out of school if I weren't me. The Boy-Who-Lived. They don't realize what kind pressure I'm under..."  
  
Justin looked up and took a deep breath. "Its like...its like with me and my marks. Its like, I look at myself and I don't like what I see..."  
  
"Why don't you like yourself?" Ginny asked, drawing her knees to her chin.  
  
"Its stupid. I...I'm failing Muggle Studies." He said simply. Malfoy lifted an eyebrow.  
  
"But...you're a Mudbl--Muggle born. How could you fail that?"   
  
"We had this big assignment. We had to make a working electric lamp. And we had half a term to make it. Easy, right? I mean, Muggles do it all the time...but...I mean, I did everything I was supposed to. Every wire was in place and I turned it in and the stupid thing didn't work. I failed the term. That's my...my whole future right there..."  
  
"What do you mean? Its just Muggle Studies." Malfoy said in a sarcastic voice. Justin squared his shoulders and looked at him.  
  
"I want to go into the Ministry of Magic when I'm through with Hogwarts. I want to apply to the Department of Muggle Relations. Without a pass in Muggle Studies, everything I've worked for will be useless." Justin said in a haunted, strained voice.  
  
"Yeah, but its no big deal..."  
  
"Maybe for you, Malfoy! You don't even need a job! Your family has millions!"  
  
"No, my father has millions! Not me!" Draco exploded and it was obvious that the subject of Draco's family was still touchy.   
  
"Then what are you going to do with your life? What can you do with your education?" Justin demanded with interest.  
  
"I don't know." Draco said after a few tense moments.  
  
"Fine. Then neither of you is better than the other...okay?" Ginny interjected, calming the air with a sigh.  
  
Luna spoke up out of nowhere again. "I can walk on my hands." Everyone looked at her with raised eyebrows. "I can also run, shower and do back flips while on my hands."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"I can play the piano too." She said solemnly.   
  
"I can fix a car engine! My dad showed me how!" Justin said brightly.   
  
"What can you do, Harry?" Ginny asked with a smile.  
  
"I can...umm...save all your lives." He said, laughing slightly at the silly turn of the conversation.  
  
"I want to see what Ginny can do! Besides hexing us all with Bat-Bogey's." He said, tongue lolling out.   
  
"I can't do anything...really..." Ginny said, waving them off.  
  
"Everyone can do something!" Draco exclaimed as Ginny thought for a moment. Her cheeks flushed prettily.  
  
"Wait...there is something I can do...but its terribly embarrassing..."  
  
"Come on!" Everyone prodded and she relented with a sigh.   
  
"Fine. But swear you won't laugh!" She said and everyone crossed their hearts and hoped to die. She reached for her purse and dug through it until she found the tube of Ever Shine Lip Gloss that Draco had been studying earlier. "I can't believe I'm going to do this..."  
  
Everyone watched as Ginny took the lip-gloss out, twisted the stick to its full extent and then placed it down in her sweater, between her breasts. She then took a breath, dipped her face down and moved it back and forth. Everyone strained to see what she was doing, but her sweater was in the way. Seconds later she flipped her head up, red hair flying out in a wave around her head.   
  
Everyone could clearly see that her mouth was perfectly covered in lipstick and not a trace of it was on her chin or cheeks. They all clapped wildly as Ginny smiled and plucked the lip-gloss tube out of her cleavage and placed it back in her bag.   
  
The clapping died out, leaving only Draco to clap slowly and sarcastically.  
  
"Where did you learn that?" Harry asked with interest.   
  
"Summer before last. There was nothing to do and Hermione and I had to make our own fun." She said with a laugh, clearly remembering the boredom of living in Grimmauld Place for a summer.  
  
Draco made a soft, annoyed sound. Ginny turned her attention on him and saw he was scowling at her.   
  
"That's great, Weasley. My image of you as a good girl is completely gone now." He said sarcastically. Ginny's gaze darkened, eyes troubled and she quickly swiped at the lip-gloss, smearing it on her hands.  
  
"You swore you wouldn't laugh, Draco!" Luna said angrily, glaring at Malfoy.  
  
"Am I laughing?"  
  
"You're such a wanker!" Harry said just as angrily as Luna, glaring at Malfoy, who glared back in a defiant way.   
  
"What do you care what I think, Potter? You made it very clear earlier that I don't count. I could disappear and no one would care, remember? I don't even exist anymore, right?" Harry looked away from the raw pain and fury in Draco's eyes. He turned to Ginny. "You hate me anyway, Weasley."  
  
"You know, you're not the only one with feelings, Malfoy! It hurts us common folk when you step all over us too!" Ginny cried, teeth clenched, tears glistening in her eyes.  
  
"You're so pathetic." Draco sneered at her furiously. "Don't you ever compare yourself to me. Ever! I've got everything! You're nothing!"  
  
"I'M nothing! Me?" Ginny exclaimed through her tears. "You're just as screwed up as the rest of us Draco! Don't you dare say that you're better than any of us? You and your stupid family pride--I thought you'd learned that it didn't matter! You're no better than I am!"  
  
"I'm better!" Draco insisted and then he looked her up and down. "I like your tatty robes, Ginny. Did your poor father buy those for you?"  
  
"Shut up!" Ginny screamed and kicked at him with her battered shoes, tears coursing down her cheeks.  
  
"I bet that's all he could afford! Or did they belong to your mother when she was a girl? How many times have they been patched?"  
  
"Shut your mouth!" Ginny's eyes flashed and then she spat out, "What about you? What about that stupid mark on your arm? Did your murdering father pass that down to you too?"  
  
Draco's eyes went cold as ice. "Don't. Don't talk about that...I told you...I'm not a Death Eater!"  
  
"Really? I thought your father was better than mine? If he was so much better he wouldn't be rotting Azkaban, would he?" Ginny said in a growl that made everyone jump slightly. "So don't you dare come at me, attack my family because you're jealous of what I have, you pathetic little boy!"  
  
"Weasley..." Draco warned, his teeth gritted hard. Ginny sneered at him.  
  
"Do you know what your father did to me my first year of school?" Draco looked slightly taken aback. "He tried to kill me. He gave me Tom Riddle--You-Know-Who's--diary knowing it would kill me. He didn't care. Your father is a murdering bastard and he would have had my blood on his hands if Harry hadn't saved me."  
  
"You're lying." Draco said in a haunted voice. Harry was slightly surprised he had never heard this before.   
  
"No she's not." He spoke up heavily. "I saw it."  
  
"Now who is better?" Ginny asked in an anguished voice. Draco caught her eye and looked away. He looked ready to be sick as he fixed his gaze down at his feet, his face ashen and haunted.   
  
Silence pervaded the Library.   
  
"Are we all going to be horrible people when we grow up?" Justin asked in a quiet voice.   
  
"Its inevitable. It just happens." Luna said, leaning her head on the chair she was using as an armrest.   
  
"What happens?" Ginny asked, wiping tears away with her lipstick-smudged hand.  
  
"When you grow up...your heart dies." Luna said in her misty, dreamy voice. Harry took of his glasses and rubbed at his eyes.  
  
"Who cares?" Draco said sullenly, his head thrown back, staring at the ceiling.  
  
"I do." Luna said in a tremulous voice, swallowing hard.  
  
Silence came again and then Justin spoke up once more. "I was just wondering...and I know its a strange time to ask but...are we all friends now?"   
  
Everyone looked at each other, especially Draco and Harry. They nodded.  
  
"Yeah, guess so." Harry said with a sigh.  
  
"So...so what happens on Monday? I mean, Slytherins and Gryffindors aren't friends. Are you two still friends?" Justin asked, looking back and forth between Harry and Draco. "For that matter, are the rest of us friends?"  
  
"We're all friends anyway Justin..." Ginny started to say, but Justin huffed at her.  
  
"No we're not. I mean...we know each other, we tolerate each other... But are we really friends? Do we all hang out, talk to each other? No. We don't. We're all divided, either by House or year or...or..."  
  
"Or ignoring someone because you only see them as a little bratty kid sister..." Harry finished out, glancing at Ginny in apology. She smiled tight-lipped at him.  
  
"So, what about it?" Justin insisted.   
  
"You want the truth?" Ginny asked him, biting down on her lips. Justin nodded. "No. Probably not."  
  
"With all of us, or just Draco?" Luna said, blinking at Ginny, who ducked her head.  
  
"Probably all of you."  
  
"That's really nice, Ginny!" Harry said, furrowing his brow at her and replacing his glasses with a snap of his wrist.  
  
"Be honest Harry! You may get along with the Hufflepuffs and the Ravenclaws, but you still keep to the Gryffindors! Hell, you barely notice the other Gryffindors! No one can get through the friendship you, Ron and Hermione have! Believe me, I know! Monday...that won't change and you know it!"  
  
"No way!" Harry protested, but only half-heartedly. He knew she was right...  
  
"What if I wanted to be your friend, Ginny? Weird, Loony Lovegood..." Luna asked seriously and Ginny lowered her head, afraid to reply. "You'd laugh at me, wouldn't you?"  
  
"I..."  
  
"You can say it."  
  
"Probably." She said, avoiding Luna's gaze.  
  
"You are a bitch!" Draco burst out, seeing the look on Luna's face. Ginny turned her attention on him once more and glared.  
  
"I'm a bitch because I'm telling the truth?"  
  
"No, because you're sitting over there preaching about how no one is better than anyone else and then you say that you are! What's so wrong with Loony? What? Afraid your stupid friends won't like her?" Draco demanded, much to everyone's surprise.  
  
"What about you? You're worse than all of us combined!" She cried. "You're always going on about how much you hate Mudbloods! Everyone knows you're prejudiced! What if Justin came up to you in the hallways? Would you be nice to him? Or would you treat him like you treat everyone else? What about Harry? What would Crabbe and Goyle think if you were suddenly nice to him? They'd think you were insane! And what about me? What would they think if we walked to the Great Hall together? They'd laugh their ugly heads off and you'd probably say you were doing it with me just so they'd stop!"  
  
Draco glared at her, furious once more. "Don't you ever talk about my friends! You don't know any of them and you don't understand how they are! You don't know what its like to be a Slytherin! Stick to the things you know, Weasley. Second hand everything, Gryffindor courage, Quidditch, your stupid brothers and your poor parents!"  
  
"SHUT UP!" Ginny screamed, kicking at him again.  
  
"And as far as you being concerned about what Crabbe and Goyle would say if we were seen together, you can forget it! It'll never happen! I'd never stoop so low and you know it!"   
  
"I hate you." Ginny said, looking hurt. Draco paled at his words and then tried to appear as if he didn't care.  
  
"Good." He said shortly, running a hand through his hair and slicking it back once more. Ginny gave a little sob and buried her freckled face in her palms. Draco muttered something under his breath and pressed his lips together in a fine line.  
  
Everyone was quiet until Justin once again spoke up, his voice oddly choked. "I guess Luna and I are better people than you? Us weirdoes from the Houses that never win, never do anything spectacular, right?" He turned to Luna. "Would you ignore me?"  
  
"I don't have any friends..." She said, radishes swinging.  
  
"But if you did?" Justin asked, smiling despite himself.  
  
"If I did, I wouldn't have the kind of friends who'd care." She said simply, twirling a piece of hair around her finger.   
  
Justin went sober. "Well...I don't care about any of that stuff. Houses, social circles...none of it. Not even Draco's...prejudice against Muggleborns. I wouldn't do that to any of you."   
  
"Well...the Hufflepuffs look up to us Gryffindors." Ginny said and Justin laughed in her face.   
  
"You think that, do you?" Justin said, shaking his head. "No...we don't. You guys may get all the glory, but we have pride in what we do. We're not second best. We had a great hero, you know. Our champion..."  
  
"Cedric." Harry said shortly, his heart dropping. Justin fixed his gaze on Harry.   
  
"Yeah." Justin nodded and then looked back at Ginny. "Your lot may do great things, but Hufflepuff House is just as good. Why don't you think we are?"  
  
"I don't think that! I swear...just..."  
  
"Just what, Ginny?"  
  
"Its hard...being from Gryffindor. Being from my family! I have so much to live up to, you know? Its a lot of pressure..."  
  
Justin looked skeptical and hurt. "You think I don't know pressure? You honestly think that? Well got to hell, Ginny! Go to hell!"  
  
Justin hid his head in his arms and everyone watched his shoulders shake, not sure what to say. He lifted his face, tears glistening on his cheeks. "Do you know what I did to get detention? Do you?"  
  
No one answered.  
  
"I stole one of Snape's poisonous potions." He said in a short voice, his chest closing in on him. It felt good to get the words out. Everyone looked shocked.  
  
"Why did you steal his poison?" Harry asked lightly. Justin's eyes were far away.  
  
"The stupid light bulb had to go on...and it didn't go on!" He said vaguely.   
  
"What was the poison for?" Harry insisted, but Justin sniffed hard and closed his eyes.  
  
"Forget it."  
  
"You brought it up, mate..."  
  
"I can't fail in Muggle Studies. I can't. I know I can't. My parents can't. My...my mother...she...she's always going on about my schoolwork and how, how she doesn't want me here. My name was down for Eton. She'd been planning my life for, for ages...she wanted me to go into the Muggle Ministry...it was her dream. But...I convinced her to let me go here. And I could still get into the Ministry of Magic, you know...so I thought that would make her happy. She just...she's always on me. I didn't get enough O.W.L.'s...I wasn't made a prefect...I wasn't put into Ravenclaw... I'm not good enough for her. I'm not smart enough." He rambled on, seemingly unaware that they were all sitting there, listening intently. "I failed her. She'll want to pull me out of Hogwarts, I know it..."  
  
"Oh, Justin..."  
  
Justin hit the chair next to him, toppling it over in his anger. He wiped at his eyes. "I was just...weighing my options, you know..."  
  
"Killing yourself isn't an option." Ginny said fiercely, her lip trembling.  
  
"Well I didn't do it!"  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"I...I put in my bag...the vial burst and burned right through my bag. I was walking down the hallway and...it was dripping after me...looked like I'd wet myself..."   
  
"Really?" Harry couldn't help but laugh. Justin scowled.   
  
"Its not funny..." Everyone laughed again, imagining Justin walking down the hallways with a leaky bag. Justin smiled despite himself. "Yeah...it is, I guess. That stupid lamp was burned right through too. The bulb burst..."  
  
Everyone laughed again and he smiled widely, throwing off his tears. Luna laughed the hardest and then gasped out, "Do you know what I did to get detention?"  
  
Harry was immediately interested. He sat up and asked, "No, what?"  
  
Luna smiled. "Nothing. I walked in and there you all were and I decided I had nothing better to do." Harry's mouth flew open and everyone started laughing harder. Luna laughed again, long and loud, clutching her sides.  
  
All Harry could do was stare in wonder.  
  
****  
  
"Ninety-nine...one hundred! Ready or not, here I come!" Ginny called, lifting her head from off the bookshelf. She looked around, peering into the dusty, dark recesses of the Library for the rest of the group.   
  
She glanced at Madam Pince's counter, which had been designated as "home base". Ginny had never played Hide-N-Go-Seek, as it was a Muggle game, but Justin and Harry had explained the rules quite simply and everyone had agreed to play just to pass the time.  
  
It was definitely a mark of his boredom that Draco hadn't even commented on it. Or maybe it was something more...  
  
Ginny tiptoed across the Library, trying not to make the wooden floorboards creak underfoot. She jumped against the nearest bookshelf and peered between the large, dusty books. A pair of big green eyes greeted her and she could tell who it was from the lightning bolt scar on his forehead. Ginny smiled and went to lunge around the bookshelf.  
  
Harry tore past her and she only caught his wind. She took off after him, leaping chairs and a table, but he'd already reached Madam Pince's counter, a smile on his face.  
  
"Grrr." Ginny said and took off again with three other people to find.   
  
She darted to the left suddenly, reaching for a large tapestry that looked suspiciously bulgy in the center. Just as she touched it, Luna leapt out, ducked her arm and ran off in the direction of Harry. Ginny followed right on her heels, fingers outstretched.  
  
"Come on Luna! She's right behind you!" Harry yelled, holding out his hand. Luna reached him and he pushed her in toward the counter at his side. They both laughed and Ginny cursed under breath.  
  
Two more to go.  
  
With careful looking, she found Justin under her and Harry's table, curled up in a ball and trying to appear as small as possible. Her eyes narrowed and she dived under the table after him. She almost caught a hold of his pant cuffs, but he wriggled out the side of the table and tore off toward Madam Pince's counter.   
  
He touched it before Ginny could right herself.   
  
"No fair!" She called with a smile.  
  
"One more to go, or you're it again!" Justin said with a triumphant smile as he sat down on Madam Pince's counter in a way the Librarian would have killed him for.   
  
Ginny scowled good-naturedly and tiptoed back across the Library, intent on find Malfoy. She looked everywhere too, under the tables, in between the bookshelves and behind all the tapestries. She stopped at the gate to the restricted section and bit her lip. Students weren't allowed in there, strictly speaking, but she'd already broken a million rules today...what was one more?  
  
She pulled out her wand and lifted it to unlock the door with magic.   
  
"Naughty little Weasley..." Draco breathed right in her ear. She wheeled around, intending to tag him, but he danced away from her outstretched fingers. "So close!"  
  
She lunged for him again, but he danced away. She did again and again, getting more and more frustrated as they moved out into the open. Everyone cheered her on and then switched sides and cheered Draco on too.   
  
"Just hold still!" Ginny said, stopping in her tracks, her hands on her hips in a way that reminded Harry of Mrs. Weasley.   
  
"That's not the way you play the game! You're supposed to chase after me, remember. I thought you were a Chaser?" Draco taunted her with a grin. She narrowed her eyes, took the bait and rushed at him before he could move.  
  
They collided and she brought them down to the ground, Draco beneath her. Draco gave a strangled gasp as they hit the ground with a thud. Ginny smiled, sitting on his chest, her hair swinging around her face. Draco looked shocked.   
  
"Hey!"  
  
"All's fair in l..." But she stopped before she could finish the phrase, blushing deeply.   
  
"You're it, Draco." Justin said, but Luna suddenly gave a gasp.   
  
"We've only got an hour of detention left! Snape...he could come in at any time!" She said, biting down on her lip. Harry glanced at his wristwatch and sighed.   
  
"She's right. If Snape comes in here and finds out you snuck out of that broom closet..."  
  
"He'll what? Give me another detention and take more points from Slytherin?" Draco said sarcastically, tilting his head back, Ginny still sitting atop him.   
  
"He might kick you out."  
  
"He might do that anyway. After I tell Dumbledore what my father sent me..." Draco's gaze darkened and he glanced back up at Ginny, who suddenly seemed to realize she was still straddling him. She slid off and they both stood.  
  
"You're going to tell him?" Harry asked in surprise.  
  
"Yeah." Draco said shortly, shrugging his shoulders. "Might get kicked out. Might not. I want to come clean though."  
  
"That's...good." Harry said and then he dropped the subject. He hoped Malfoy didn't get kicked out and he was fairly shocked at this new feeling. "Look, you should go anyway...Snape'll really kill you if he finds out you snuck out. And the rest of us..."  
  
"Yeah. Wouldn't want you all to get in trouble too. I'll go." Draco said, glancing at Ginny and dusting off his robes. He looked around the Library and then looked at each of them in turn. "See you later."  
  
Everyone nodded and then watched as he slipped out the door as quietly as he could. Ginny drifted over to the rest of them, sitting up on the counter with Justin. Luna sat next to her and Harry followed suit on Luna's other side. They all went quiet, thinking of the past few hours.  
  
Ginny looked at the table she'd sat at with Harry and saw her quill and empty scrolls on the table. She bit her lip and then thought of something. She glanced at Justin.  
  
"Justin?"  
  
"Yeah?" He asked, looking her way.  
  
"Are you going to write your essay?" She asked curiously.   
  
"Yes. Why?" He asked, eyebrow furrowed.  
  
"Well, I was just thinking...it's a waste for everyone to write their papers, right?"  
  
"But Snape..." Justin protested.  
  
"I mean, what's the point?" Ginny cut him off. "We're all going to say the same thing, am I right?"  
  
Justin looked at her knowingly. "You just don't want to write your essay."  
  
"True. But...you've got a great big brain, right?" Ginny said in a charming voice, batting her eyelashes at him. Justin swelled with pride.  
  
"Well...I wouldn't say that..."  
  
"Well, we trust, right?" Ginny said, glancing at Luna and Harry, who were watching them with interest. They both nodded their heads in agreement. Justin thought about it a moment and then shrugged.  
  
"Okay, I'll do it."  
  
"Cool." Ginny said happily and they all watched as Justin hopped down from the counter and marched over to his table to get to work. Ginny smiled and then turned her head toward Luna, sitting at her elbow.  
  
Luna slowly turned her way, meeting her interested gaze. She didn't blink, as was her custom. Ginny kept staring too.   
  
"What?" Luna demanded and Ginny plucked at her sleeve.   
  
"Come on."   
  
"Where are we going?" Luna asked as Ginny hopped down from the counter. Luna followed curiously.  
  
"Just follow me." Ginny said with a grin and then led her off across the Library, leaving Harry to watch them go, his legs dangling from the counter, heels banging against the wooden front.  
  
Ginny sat Luna down in a corner of the Library, her purse in her hands. Luna watched her, pale eyebrows drawn up in concern as Ginny pulled makeup out of her bag.   
  
"What are you doing?"   
  
"Have you ever worn makeup?" Ginny asked her curiously, but Luna shrugged.  
  
"Never seemed very important before. And my mother died before she could teach me." She said simply as Ginny bit down on her lip and shook a bottle of mascara that magically never clumps on the lashes.   
  
"Well, you're about to learn. Every girl should know how to put makeup on. And your eyes would look so pretty with a little mascara and some eye shadow." Ginny said, looking her over and trying to decide what to do first. "And your hair...your face shape would stand out more if it were shorter...maybe around the chin?"  
  
Ginny pulled out her wand. Luna stared. "What are you going to do?"  
  
"Do you trust me?"  
  
"I don't know..." Luna said in a doubting voice, but Ginny smiled. "Why are you being so nice?"  
  
"Because. We're friends." Ginny said and Luna smiled back, glanced at Ginny's wand and then nodded her head.  
  
"Do your worst..." She said, her wide eyes glistening. Ginny grinned, waved her wand and then muttered a spell she'd learned last year. Luna's long, scraggly hair immediately spun out in long fingers that whipped around. Ginny waved her wand again and the strands fell away from Luna's head.  
  
The hair lay still again, floating in wispy strands around the Ravenclaw's face. It was a marked improvement and it framed Luna's face quite well.   
  
"Now for makeup..." She said, admiring her handiwork as Luna fingered the ends of her severed hair. Ginny set to work, applying a generous coat of mascara, a light blue eye shadow to make Luna's silvery eyes shine and then a nice coat of pink lip gloss and some blush. It was all very subtle, but Ginny couldn't help but smile.  
  
The dotty Luna Lovegood was a very pretty girl underneath all the hair and the strange behavior. She'd just never paid any attention to herself.   
  
"There." Ginny said, sitting back on her heels and holding up a mirror so Luna could see what she'd done.  
  
Luna's mouth opened a little and her wide eyes blinked in surprise. "Wow."  
  
"You like?"  
  
"I...thank you Ginny." Luna said in a very flattered voice. "I look like one of the Painted Arpenicks from the South American deserts..."  
  
Ginny's smile froze for a moment. Then she shrugged and decided to go along with it. "That's what I was aiming for." She said, completely amused that, even beneath a layer of makeup and a new haircut, Luna Lovegood was still her strange, wonderful self. Ginny's smile turned calculating. "And I heard that Harry loves Painted Arpenicks..."  
  
Luna's mouth snapped shut. "What?"  
  
"Nothing...I just noticed how he was looking at you, is all."  
  
"He wasn't..." Luna blushed beneath the makeup and glanced around the Library. Ginny's smiled widened, seeing that she'd nailed her earlier suspicions.  
  
"He was!" She declared and leaned in close. "Why don't you go talk to him?"  
  
Luna was uncharacteristically flustered. She looked down at her feet and then looked back up at Ginny. "You should go talk to Draco...before he can get away..."  
  
"What do you mean?" Ginny demanded, her stomach flip-flopping. Luna smiled to see the tables turned.   
  
"You know what I mean. Just...go talk to him." Luna said knowingly and Ginny licked her lips.  
  
"I don't know..."  
  
"I do."  
  
Both girls looked at each other, daring each other until finally Ginny gave, looking away from Luna's looming eyes. "Fine." Luna smiled. "But you have to go talk to Harry too."  
  
Luna's smile faded and she smoothed a hand over her newly shorn hair. She nodded and then waved Ginny to go. Ginny waved and took off across the Library, leaving her behind. Luna stood and watched her walk past Justin, who had started to write. She turned her attention on Harry, still sitting on the counter, deep in thought.  
  
She steeled herself and walked toward him.  
  
****  
  
There was no one in the hallway. Ginny strolled across to the broom cupboard next to the teacher's lounge, hoping like hell that Snape wasn't going to come sweeping out to meet her. But, like he had done all afternoon, he didn't show. Perhaps he didn't care what they did now that he'd punished Draco so thoroughly.   
  
Whatever the reason though, Ginny had no problem getting to the broom cupboard door with no one spotting her. She hovered outside of it, knowing that Draco was on the other side. Her heart pounded in her chest.   
  
This was Draco Malfoy! He was an arrogant prig who thought he was better than everyone, including herself...  
  
But...maybe...  
  
Ginny smiled and pulled the door open, then stepped inside. She blinked in the darkness and Draco's shining mercury eyes slowly came into focus.  
  
"You lost, Weasley?" He asked lightly from his sprawl against a tower of boxes. Ginny smiled in the dark and locked the door with a tap of her wand.  
  
****  
  
Justin wrote something, stopped and then lost himself in thought. He chewed on his lip and then glanced up at the clock to see how much time he had left before Snape came in to relieve them all. As he did, he caught sight of a girl he'd never seen before.  
  
At least that's what he thought for a moment before he looked closely. Luna Lovegood was walking toward him, her wand behind her ear again. Her hair was short though, framing her chin in a flattering way. Without her hair in the way, he could see the swells of her breasts and her delicate shoulders and neck. Her eyes, before so jarring, were now lined in dark blue eyeliner and mascara that complimented her so well.   
  
Justin smiled at her and she stopped dead in her tracks, radishes still swinging against the column of her neck. She looked at him, slightly put off by his open mouthed shock. He caught himself and nodded his head.  
  
"Cool." He said, ducking his head a little.   
  
"Thank you." She said in a whisper. Justin glanced over his shoulder slyly and saw Harry sitting on the counter, his mouth open. Luna pulled in a breath and Justin quickly looked down at the scroll before him. This was none of his business.  
  
Harry watched as Luna walked toward him, hair bouncing against her cheeks, luminous eyes glued to his. She bit down on her pink lips and Harry's gut gave a lurch.   
  
He was suddenly finding it very hard to breathe.  
  
****  
  
Draco's lips were soft against Ginny's as she kissed him gently, her hand on his chest. She pulled back a second later, heart pounding so loud in her chest she thought he could surely hear it. He looked at her in awe and took in a trembling breath.  
  
"Why did you do that?" He asked, reaching up a hand to push a strand of hair behind her ear.  
  
"I knew you wouldn't." She said simply, biting down on her suddenly swollen lips. Draco's eyes fixed on them and he looked like he wanted to kiss her again.   
  
"I suppose this complicates things..." He started to say, almost mournfully. "I mean...we're not exactly..."  
  
"I'm a bad girl, remember?" Ginny smiled, cutting him off. "I can do whatever I want. Whoever..."  
  
Draco lifted an eyebrow at the implications of her words and then smiled his lopsided smile. "You don't get much badder than me, I guess."  
  
Ginny laughed softly and then looked him square in the face. "Where you really disgusted about what I did with that lip gloss?"   
  
Draco laughed, his eyes twinkling. "Honestly?"  
  
"Honestly." Ginny insisted firmly and then glared when Draco nodded his head yes. He saw her expression and laughed again.  
  
"No. No, I wasn't." He said mischievously and then he turned sober. "Did my father really try to kill you?"  
  
"Yes." She said simply, meeting his gaze.   
  
"I'm sorry." He said with genuine concern and regret. She smiled.  
  
"Its okay. It was a long time ago."  
  
"Still…if I'd known…"  
  
"You wouldn't have cared! Don't pretend you would have. You were an arrogant little prig and you know it."  
  
Draco scowled and then shrugged. "You're right. Still am, actually. But I'm kind of attached to you…it's the bad girl attitude…"  
  
"Yeah right!" She smacked him on the arm and he grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her into another long, slow kiss.  
  
Ginny closed her eyes and sank against him, knowing that she'd have to get back the Library soon, but not much caring at the moment. Draco weaved his fingers in her hair and she sighed softly against his mouth.   
  
She was definitely being bad.  
  
****  
  
In the Library, Justin looked down at his finished essay, smiling in a pleased way. He lifted the scroll to his face and kissed it, very much proud of himself. He glanced at Harry and Luna a few feet away and then looked back at his paper.   
  
Harry stared at Luna as if he'd never seen her a day in his life. He couldn't quite wrap his mind around the girl before him.   
  
"What...what happened to you?" He asked in awe. Luna tugged at her hair and pulled her wand out from behind her ear.   
  
"Why? Ginny...she did it! She...she..." Luna trailed off as Harry swallowed hard. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing!" Harry said quickly as she started to turn away. He grabbed her wrist in his fingers and pulled her around. "I...you just look...different. Not a bad different...just...its nice. Your eyes...I never noticed..."  
  
"Is that a good thing?" Luna asked, taking a deep breath, Harry's hands hot on her wrist.  
  
"Its very good. Its...its really, really good." Harry said with a nervous laugh. He couldn't stop staring at her. His blood rushed through his head and he struggled to breathe properly.   
  
Luna smiled and Harry felt like he was floating. No, it wasn't a bad thing at all.  
  
****  
  
The last hour of detention melted by much quicker than anyone of them wanted it to. Ginny slipped back into the Library before Snape could come and relieve them all, her pulse racing, lips swollen. She looked in Harry's direction, expecting him to come raging at her for leaving, but she quickly saw that he was much too preoccupied to care where she'd gone.   
  
Ginny smiled as she watched Harry and Luna talking at a table in the back. They didn't take their eyes off each other for a second.   
  
Soon, the door opened and Snape came thundering in.   
  
"Get out." Was all he said and then they were suddenly free. No speech, no barely concealed threats, nothing. As everyone stood, Justin glanced down at his scroll. Snape ignored him though and swept out of the doors. Everyone followed. Harry and Luna walked together and Ginny saw Harry take her hand in his.   
  
Ginny smiled and then stepped out into the hall. Snape was standing before them. He lifted his wand and tapped on the door of the broom closet; it creaked open to reveal Draco sitting there was a fairly dreamy expression on his face.   
  
Snape gestured him out and Draco climbed lazily to his feet, as if he'd been there all day. Snape glared at him for a moment. "See you tomorrow, Mr. Malfoy. My dungeons this time."   
  
Malfoy nodded his head and took his wand back as Snape handed it to him. His eyes were already on Ginny. Snape sneered at them all and turned on his heel. He thundered back through the Library.   
  
Justin bit his lip. "We should all probably run, before Snape comes back." He said weightily and everyone took the hint.  
  
They all moved off down the hallway in a group. As they trooped down the last staircase, they saw the doors open and students swell inside, cheeks pink from a whole day spend in Hogsmeade. Everyone looked at each other and smiled. They didn't envy everyone else in the slightest.   
  
"Well." Justin said, unsure of what to do. Harry and Draco exchanged glanced and nodded their heads. "What do we do now?"  
  
"I'm going to go do something very stupid. See you all later if I don't get kicked out." Draco said bitterly. Everyone clapped him on the back, but didn't stop him. Draco needed to do this. He nodded and then walked off in the direction of Dumbledore's office.  
  
Ginny looked at everyone, especially Harry. Harry glanced at her and nodded his head ever so slightly--he wasn't going to tell Ron. Ginny took off after Draco, stopping him a few feet away. He turned around and looked into her eyes.   
  
"See you brat." He said and then kissed her full on the lips. Ginny closed her eyes and felt him slide away. When she opened them, he was long gone. She looked back at the others, who were watching. She ducked her head and walked away, leaving them all alone.   
  
Justin looked back at Harry and Luna, then in the direction of the Library. He sighed as he spotted Hannah Abbot and Ernie MacMillan come through the front doors. "Bye."   
  
Luna and Harry waved goodbye to him and then turned to each other. Harry bit down on his lip and pushed his glasses back up on his nose. He didn't know what to say or do.   
  
Luna took the matter completely out of his hands. She stood up on tiptoe and kissed him full on the lips. His limbs felt weird, but he managed to lift a hand and twist it in the back of Luna's hair and pull her closer. The world rushed by him like a speeding train.   
  
Luna pulled away a moment later, her eyes closed. She opened them and Harry felt like he was drowning in her misty orbs.   
  
"I..." He stammered, but she smiled and pulled away from him.  
  
"Bye, Harry." She whispered and then took a step backward. Harry didn't want her to go. She kept going though, walking backward down the hallway in the direction of Ravenclaw Tower. She disappeared around the corner and Harry finally took a breath, realizing he hadn't since she let go of him.  
  
"Was that...Loony Lovegood?" Ron's voice suddenly asked in amazement and horror. Harry swiveled around and met the gazes of his two best friends, pink cheeked and holding hands. They were also carrying bulging sacks of candy from Honeydukes.   
  
"Yeah." Harry said, going scarlet. Hermione smiled and hit Ron before he could say anything else.  
  
"Looks like you had an interesting day." She said in a measuring tone. Harry smiled vaguely at her.   
  
"You have no idea. Come on; let's go back to the common room. You can tell me what you did in Hogsmeade." He said, clapping his hands on Ron and Hermione's shoulders. Ron shook his head, but Harry resolutely promised himself he wouldn't tell either of them anything about what had happened in the Library.  
  
It was just between himself, Luna, Ginny, Justin and Draco. Whatever else was going to happen after today was unclear. Whatever the outcome of their time in detention, they all knew something special had happened. Nothing would ever change that, not being divided into Houses, not prejudices, nothing.  
  
And Harry couldn't help but smile.  
  
****  
  
Professor Severus Snape stood in the Library of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a scroll in his sallow fingers. As he read the short essay, his scowl got deeper and deeper until he crumpled it in his fist.  
  
He tossed it on the ground and spun on his heel, his mind full of thoughts he didn't want to think, his perceptions blown apart by one short essay.   
  
And he didn't like it. Not at all.  
  
****  
  
Dear Professor Snape,   
  
We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Hogsmeade visit for whatever it was we did wrong. But we think you're mad to make us write an essay telling you who we think we are. You see us, as you want to see us...in the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain, a hero, a loon, a brat and a troublemaker.  
  
Does that answer your question?  
  
Sincerely Yours,  
  
The Breakfast Club  
  
  
  
(end story)  
  
**** 


End file.
